It’s always a good time to not be in the UK, but the period around the World Cup is an especially excellent time not to be there.
I have already (thankfully) missed the months of build-up where endless pundits bleat on about how this time it will be different, really in with a chance, this might be the one etc. etc. ad nauseam. Then the competition starts and something woeful happens, like failing to beat a nation who doesn’t even play football to any extent; and the moaning and recriminations start; and continue until the England team are eliminated and slope off home in disgrace.
I don’t watch television and I don’t read a newspaper; so by being selective with my on-line reading I can pretty much avoid the whole nonsense; although occasionally I am reminded that something is going on.
Please wake me when it is over.
Comments 🔗
2010-06-15| TT saysSame, same every time. The English do rather go overboard. Being a Scot I think it’s hilarious that everyone is running around in Scotland with shirts that say ‘ABE’ - ‘Anyone But England’. My Mum sent a few out here for myself and the Gals in the office. Everyone thinks it’s funny as fuck. Don’t worry when they get hammered as they always do, they’ll find a scapegoat.
2010-06-15| genuinej saysYou’re right. It’s utter crap. A total waste of money. ITV & BBC squandering shareholders’ and licence fee payers’ money on a bunch of overpaid and useless twats! Pundits employed to tell you what you’ve just seen, “experts” who can hardly speak English, and the compulsory ethnic there every time for the sake of political correctness. It’s enough to drive you to drink. (if you’re not there already). It makes me sick.
2010-06-16| MSB sayscurrent football joke going around is…..
The English players visited an orphanage in South Africa this morning. “Its so good to put a smile of the faces of people constantly struggling and facing the impossible” said Kagiso Goitsemedime, aged 6
2010-06-16| Billy saysI declare a near total disinterest in football these days, however, TT’s unbalanced mockery attracts my attention.
In the unlikely event that Scotland ever qualify again for the World Cup Finals I suspect that the northern cousins would also tend to “go overboard”.
The ghost of Ally (‘My name is Ally MacLeod and I am a born winner’ McLeod lives on. I suspect the Scots propensity to line up enthusiastically behind a false prophet is no more or less than that of the English; they just get rather fewer opportunities to exercise it.
“Never discuss politics, religion or football with strangers” my father used to advise me many years ago. He used to have the occasional fall from grace too.
2010-06-16| TT saysOh - c’mon Billy, we never go into the World Cup expecting to win. It’s just an excuse for a party. With England it’s rabid nationalism and the expectation that they have some god given right to win.
2010-06-16| Billy saysI was actually in Aberdeen in ‘78 along with the host of this illustrious organ and, while the memory fades, there was a clear belief about that their time had come, I even started to believe it myself and I think I could still have go at singing along to “We’re on the march with Ally’s Army”!!
No matter, it was lot of fun and early elimination was to have no effect at all on the torrent of booze surrounding every game. A couple of notorious Aberdonians, Walter Morris and Ian McLeod, led me badly astray on one occasion, it may have been the Peru(?) game, the hangover still comes back from time to time :-)
2010-06-16| Pete saysIf I can get a word in edgeways here between some in-fighting, can I just say it’s a really cute picture.
But;
Is there a reason the Brazil flag is front and centre - while the Spanish flag is broken and off to one side? Did you get the background to the story?
2010-06-16| Spike saysThank you Pete. Whenever football is mentioned, people start to bicker.
The boy was with his parents in a coffee shop in Dan Sai. His father was wearing a Manchester United shirt and his mother had the German flag on her face. I suppose they were trying to cover as many options as possible.
Billy, is it possible to construct a sentence containing “Walter Morris” without also mentioning “hangover”?
TT, a Scott accusing another country of rabid nationalism….. Having lived in Scotland for eight years, I find that rather ironic.
2010-06-16| Billy saysRe your Walter Morris point; it is of course linguistically doable - but highly unlikely to be factually correct.
2010-06-17| TT saysYea, I was in Aberdeen for the 78’ World Cup. You have to admit that Archie Gemmill’s goal against Holland was an all time classic. Top Dog.
2010-06-17| Billy saysTT … the use of “admit” in your implicit question is pejorative and therefore I will not answer it directly. Unlike the situation north of the border, English school children are not taught to hate their near neigbours so I was pretty enthusiastic in my support of Scotland at that time as were all the other Sassenachs I knew. Wearing an ABS (anyone but Scotland) shirt would have drawn looks of pity and/or incomprehension.
For the record, Archie Gemmill was a wee pearl and his goal against the Dutch just one, albeit magic cameo in an outstanding career. It was a tragedy that he didn’t play in the European Cup Final for Derby the following year.
2010-06-17| Spike saysWho the fuck is/was Archie Gemmill? This is getting worse than the Jeff Savage post.
Oh, and in case you missed my magnificent tweet:
2010-06-17| Pete saysRe - your tweet. Classic!! There’s far too many people out there with too much time on their hands. I laughed anyway.
2010-06-23| Alan Mann saysGuys, isn’t this a bit like sour grapes? I am sure had Scotland made it you would be donning your kilts and and wassailing with the best (or the worst) of them in town!
Best wishes,
Alan
2010-07-07| web conferencing saysmy God, i thought you were going to chip in with some decisive insght at the end there, not leave it without an summary.
And I didn’t think you would remove my spam url.