996 - Honour Barcelona

Manchester United have lost tonight
To a superior Barcelona
It’s been quite reminiscent of that night
In ’99, when Munich were better
But the Reds won anyway, luckier
Than their opponents. This time luck was short
And the better team won. Poor Manchester!
You were caught short, you were outplayed, out-thought
The ball was glued to Iniesta’s boot
And Lionel Messi and Co have the right
To lift that trophy in the Roman air
Ferguson’s magic has failed; he’s been taught
A lesson by a youngster. Now, the sight
Of Spanish triumph, English dishonour
Wed 27 May 2009

985 - Alone again, poetry

Been struggling to re-record ‘World At War’
And still I’m not quite satisfied it’s done
As I prepared to sing I heard the roar
From Old Trafford: yes, United have won
The title for the umpteenth time, ho hum
Good news at the foot of the table, though
Newcastle, at home, couldn’t beat Fulham
Hull got a point, and so did Middlesbrough
So the Geordies face relegation woe
Tonight (though without Janet), it’s Blue Boar
What a bore! Yet again I’m on my own!
Some chats with poet friends, hopefully, though
Sadly this time, I’m not taking guitar
Just reading three poems. I’ll miss you, hun!
Sat 16 May 2009

975 - Drinking and smoking outside Notre Dame

Drinking and smoking outside Notre Dame
And at long last the sun now shows its face
All nationalities come here disarmed
All people relax in this ancient place
Photo-opportunities; cameras race
Accents Spanish and Asian, French, German
Young, middle-aged and old, time can’t erase
These special scenes, sunlit moments of fun
Me, I’m content, beer bottle number one
Almost empty; with number two I’m armed
Bottles of Kronenbourg don’t go to waste
Preparing for the match that’s still to come
(Chelsea/Barcelona) and so the aim
Is to get pissed cheaply in this fine place!
Wed 6 May 2009

964 - Munch of the day

Awoke with my brown-skinned girl by my side
Breakfast, and then with great skill she helped me
Sort out phone pictures, and then with some pride
Showed me her own pix of her family
And travels over the last year or three
Got cloudy, so I chose to go swimming
With Josie (too cold to go to the sea)
Roads packed with United fans, all driving
To the game against Spurs (seems they’re winning
The title once again, Ferguson’s side…!)
A fun time in Stockport pool with Josie
Followed by a late afternoon’s eating
And joking around. Back home, guitar played
Quick call to my girl, football on TV…
Sat 25 Apr 2009

957 - Down and up

Another Saturday in London town
Last week I went with you on Megabus
Well today it’s with Louis I’m back down
Taking him back to continue studies
At Westminster Uni, Harrow Campus
But first, it’s off to see another game
The Rams are visiting Crystal Palace
So come on Derby, it’d be a shame
If our season spluttered out like a flame
On a birthday cake candle when it’s blown
After I’ve dropped him off with little fuss
It’s up the motorway once more; those same
Old sights and red rear lights that have all grown
Familiar over years… Then once more, us
Sat 18 Apr 2009

954 - Hillsborough, twenty years on

Today the main news was from Liverpool
Today was twenty years from Hillsborough
The Sheffield stadium where fate was cruel
To football fans crushed in that disaster
I saw the pictures on the day after
Sick close-ups of the dying; some enjoyed
Them, but they were just lads from Manchester
Finding some fun in those Scouse lives destroyed
Hardly surprising then that there’s such pride
In Liverpool today for those football
Supporters they remember, year on year
And anger that the cover-up tried to hide
Mistakes by police. Today, Anfield full
Of mourners, the 96 remembered
Wed 15 Apr 2009

946 - Work, rest and play 2

Early to bed tonight, early to rise
Tomorrow to fly to Belfast Airport
I may not be wealthy, may not be wise
In work and love’s tentacles I am caught
Tie me up, tie me down…I’m watching sport
Man U against Porto, half-time one-all
And after that, Jools Holland, who has brought
The Specials onto his show (Terry Hall?
We’ll see…) I’ve watched a film and now football
And so far the game has been a surprise
Glad no bets placed, or I could have got caught
Once more with my pants down, making fuck all
Up at six tomorrow, up in the skies
A full agenda, given lots of thought
Tue 7 Apr 2009

943 - Oh my Darlington!

Not much sleep for the drive to Darlington
To see the Quakers play Morecambe - deep joy!
The usual cold north east wind, despite sun
The ticket girl on the phone to her boy
This time I decided I would employ
My Salford Uni student card, saving
Some money. Once inside, no hoi polloi
At all on this new stadium’s seating
Just sitting in the shade, and shivering
The game itself was goalless and humdrum
No surprise there, but Louis was annoyed
By the fans pushing, shouting and shoving
The atmosphere friendly, banging of drums
And calls for Hartlepool to be destroyed!
Sat 4 Apr 2009

940 - Lazy ways

I rolled over in bed at half-past eight
And tried to doze off again, but couldn’t
Wednesday mornings are so noisy; I hate
The bin emptying racket that doesn’t
Allow lie-ins. And so I had to hunt
For wakefulness for another half-hour
Till I got up; admittedly, this meant
I was sleepy at work, not at top power
Smokin chicken soup and bread for lunch - wow
Then saw ‘The Damned United’ - celebrate
Derby’s ’72 title that went
To the wire, but we beat Leeds, and how!
Then home to watch England-Ukraine, a late
Chat to my new love, and now the day’s spent
Wed 1 Apr 2009

901 - Transports of delight

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my good God
I so, so nearly missed that bus back home
Been down to London again; things seemed good
Plenty of time after the Millwall game
To reach Victoria coach station again
But at Stockwell I chose the wrong platform
Not Victoria, but a Northern Line train
Is what I hopped on to! With some alarm
I instantly knew my mistake: the harm
Done, had to stay on till Oval, but would
There be time to catch the coach, my mind groaned
Like metal wheels on metal tracks, forlorn
Ran through Victoria… Arrivals! No good!
Departures…Gate 20... Wave driver down!!!
Sat 21 Feb 2009

895 - What's going on

Today I’m writing, maybe recording
Then watching football live on the TV
The FA Cup Fifth Round match featuring
Manchester United, Derby County
At Derby’s Pride Park. A Rams victory
Seems unlikely, but come on Cloughie’s boys
Against the Reds we recently put three
Past them in the League Cup, though lots of noise
Has been made about their clean sheets. A cruise
Up to Bolton with Andy this evening
To Write Out Loud’s new venue there; should be
A good night, filled with laughter and applause
Not seen Josephine this weekend; taking
Her to meet Pearl on Tuesday: out for tea
Sun 15 Feb 2009

894 - Happy alone

Tired last night, went to bed and fell asleep
Slept like a log, thank God, neighbours quiet
Valentine’s Day dawned, appointments to keep
With myself and work, no shortage of it
Started with the news, there’s no end to it
Watched a chart countdown, then football preview
Wrote fifteen pages of ‘Love At First Fright’
Then watched the football scores, as boys have to
Followed by rugby (Wales - England), then new
Songs written and recorded; been a steep
Learning curve, but getting there, bit by bit
Not bad when last month didn’t have a clue
I drank and smoked, and now to count some sheep
With Plato for my bedside reading shit!
Sat 14 Feb 2009

881 - Music to my ears

Been quite a good day at home by myself
Though, as ever, something’s gone wrong again
Slowly, surely, I’m getting back to health
Just ate sausages and mash with no pain
First, on the TV, highlights of the game
Yesterday, when Derby beat Coventry
Then, getting fed up of hearing the same
Music walking to work, changed MP3
Selection, ate soup, then wrote comedy,
Nine pages in all, but with all this wealth
Of time still left, my speakers packed in then
So now I can’t record music properly
Because I can’t play it back. But by stealth
I’m getting there; through this pain there’ll be gain
Sun 1 Feb 2009

880 - Preparations for visiting my daughter on her birthday

My daughter’s sixth birthday, cold and windy
Spent hours listening to new CDs, and wrapped
Her presents, sipped some soup, which is handy
When you can’t chew like I can’t, so I supped
My soup, with pieces of soft white bread dipped
Watched Football Focus, the soccer preview
While the music played on, and then I popped
The presents in three big bags, quite a few
Things bought, locked door, carried it all down to
The car outside, boot loaded gratefully
Under a grey sky, while a fierce wind whipped
Popped in to Maplins for adaptor, two-
Holed, but new brown shoes must wait till Sunday
Can’t be late for my date, or I’ll get slapped
Sat 31 Jan 2009

873 - Trouble with my tubes

Took the Megabus, Manchester-London
Five quid to go, and five to come back home
Saw Louis, and a match at Dagenham
But missed the first goal, as we had to come
The long way round because, this weekend, some
Repairs were being done on certain lines
Such as the District & Circle: so glum
Through West Ham, East Ham, Barking, as these signs
Kept passing oh so slowly, and the time’s
Past kick-off time, and I’ve let down my son
Waiting at Dagenham East. But the sum
Total of goals was five: they scored four times
At our end, in the end. Dagenham won
Beating Rochdale 3-2 (by aching gum!)
Sat 24 Jan 2009

856 - The Rams raid the Red Devils

Derby lead Man United at Pride Park
One-nil in the Carling Cup semi game
They’re playing in the January dark
Will things even out or will lasting fame
Accrue from this night? United seem tame
While Derby’s new manager, Nigel Clough,
Sits in the stands. The fans dream of the same
Success his father Brian brought, the love
Still strong among the Rams faithful, enough
To buoy the son until he makes his mark
Or falls victim to failure and its shame
The sack awaits all managers, so tough
This sporting life. Success, failure, a stark
Division. The Rams guard their Wembley dream
Wed 7 Jan 2009

829 - Punctured football

What a boring football season so far
Derby are struggling in the Championship
Both Birmingham and Wolves yet again spar
For promotion up to the Premiership
With Louis at uni, match-going’s slipped
And in any case it’s been bloody cold
So maybe it’s for the best, a health tip
It would be good though to have and to hold
A football-loving woman who was sold
On shivering next to me for two long hours
On Saturdays or midweek evenings, drips
Of rain down her neck not a cause to scold
Here’s hoping that Martin O’Neill’s Villa
Can sneak in the top four and rock the ship
Thur 11 Dec 2008

806 - Semi-thoughts of a drunk sassenach

Hello everybody in Edinburgh
I’d just like to say that your town’s okay
Although I was disappointed by the
Lack of lighting of Scott Monument: say,
The walk down Princes Street ended in a
Fruitful stay in a bar where the barmaid
Displayed her tits quite nicely, hip hooray
At the Queen’s Arms, all very well displayed
And then another pub, where much was said
About football, including Manchester
United’s prospects. Well, do you think they
Will finish above Liverpool? They’ve stayed
Above them for years, and so I’ll bet ya
That the Red Devils will beat the Reds, yay!
Tue 18 Nov 2008

761 - View from Harrow-on-the-Hill

Drove down to London where my son waited.
I came through South Harrow (not North), up past
The famous Harrow School, with all the kids
(All boys) in black blazers walking from class.
It may be that they were all upper class,
Or upper middle, at least. From this hill
Top I glimpsed much of London, but it passed
In a second, obscured by trees, not till
I’d spotted Harrow Campus looking real
Rectangular, a sixties box; it hid
Behind a green moving screen, but at last
I’d reached Louis. Then, having had my fill
Of driving, caught the tube train to Watford
To see them beat Preston. It was a blast
Sat 4 Oct 2008

740 - Plymouth don't rock

We drove right down to Plymouth with its Hoe
Almost the toe of Britain, Mayflower port
The reason? Plymouth v Norwich, no-show
In skill terms, but a comedy of sorts
Poor old Sturrock, the Plymouth boss, was caught
Like a rabbit in headlights; his team booed
Off at half-time, unusually. He brought
On Emile Mpenza, perhaps a shrewd
Buy, but he missed his header, and the rude
Prospect of relegation looms. He’ll go,
Will their boss, unless he’s very soon thought
Up how to make The Greens pass better. Who’d
Have thought we could drive that far, and that slow
But still get there and back in time that short!
Sat 13 Sep 2008