Searching For The Tallest Dwarf
Talksport are running a campaign called Save Our Summer which is trying to have the Home Internationals revived for one summer only (hopefully). The idea is to take our minds off the fact that none of the four home nations, plus the ROI, are good enough to take their place among the sixteen best sides who will be competing in Austria and Switzerland next summer.
At first I found the idea horrifying, not to say humiliating and then I thought that's exactly the point. In footballing terms it won't achieve anything, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool will withdraw their players on the grounds that they are entitled to a rest (and sponsors demand they fly off to China before the Olympics) and it's difficult to see where the rest of the squad could be drawn from. But as an reminder of how humiliating it is to be missing the big party it's so typically British. Let's not mourn the fact that we are useless, let's celebrate it by reviving a tournament that died in 1984 with Northern Ireland champions, Wales runners-up and England and Scotland in third and fourth place respectively.
I loved the Home Internationals when I was a kid but that was before the Champions League, satellite television and the availability of quality football from this country and overseas every night of the week. The Celtic nations have already agreed that from 2009 they will compete for a new Celtic Cup to be held in the years when there isn't a World Cup or European Championships and I would have been quite happy for them to forget about England. But the thought of some self nationalistic flagellation suddenly appeals.
3 comments:
I must admit I did wonder about the Home Internationals making a come back next summer. Of course, as you point out, there could be all sorts of reasons why it won't happen but there must be loads of us remembering how much we used to enjoy them all those years ago.
I once had the misfortune to travel on a train carrying Scotland fans down to London for the England Scotland game in 1975. I didn't really have an appreciation of the term "drunken football fans" until that day. I think that was the match we beat them 5 - 1. Having sat on that train like a frightened rabbit that scoreline was nothing short of justice to me, I can tell you.
I was at a party the following year Shy on the day when Kenny Dalglish put the winner through Ray Clemence legs - boy did the Scots (and Irish) get their revenge that night!
Ditto all that...would be great. I used to de 'bar duty' at wembley with a bunch of mates from Northwood football club, I wasn't a player (rugby and travelling for me etc) but did get to see a few of the big concerts etc...I was told by regulars that the only occasion when women weren't allowed to do bar duty was the Eng vs. Scotland football games...rather telling and a sad state of affairs.
...however, a ressurection would be fantastic...
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