Poems about the FA Cup

THIS AFTERNOON'S MATCH

I can hear the gulls
squawking
overhead.
I watch them
circling the empty terrace
for crumbs of this afternoon's match
fragments of hotdog wrappers and crushed plastic cups
all that's left of this afternoon's match.
The air is scented with
the FA cup:
nostalgia
the Twin Towers
distant dreams of the Wembley steps, yet
it's only the second round.
But still I feel the tingle of romance
of the Cup.

Earlier, two teams
one in red and white stripes,
the other blue and white quarters
in a timeless portrayal of FA cup art.
The ground was awash with hopes
excitement
eager supporters
a sea of colour.
Electricity charged the ground
it crackled on the terraces
and fuelled the players.
The ball crashed into the net
four times
two goals apiece.
The fans left the ground
moved away
down the narrow side streets
past the railway line
reflecting on this afternoon's match
yet looking towards the replay.
Wembley touches the December dusk
embracing the thoughts of the fans.

Now the ground is empty of people
except the gulls
and their squeals echo the roar of this afternoon's crowd
The away team's coach
is parked alongside the lonely pitch
Players waiting
To go home
to replay
to attempt their Wembley dreams;
I smile
Then turn to leave
with the smell of Wembley still in my senses.

SUE ASHTON
5th December 1998

As you can tell by the date, this is about our second round tie down at Exeter in the 1998/99 season. It was a typical cup-tie atmosphere and my poem is about returning to the ground after we got lost trying to find the car on the way back from going to KFC after the game! The ground was empty and the players were all on the coach ready to leave, as I've described.

MMM, NICE SAUSAGE ROLL

Cold January morning
Freezing cold
Stay in the warm...

Third round!!!
FA Cup third round!
Minnows v Giants
Well -
Rovers at Rotherham...
Almost forget breakfast
Gather scarves, shirts
( Lots of jumpers )

Nine o'clock
On the motorway
Wave to other Gasheads
Spot other fans
Travelling
for FA Cup third round

Stop at Services
Lots of Gasheads
Blue and white quarters
EVERYWHERE!

The junction for Rotherham
Roth-er-ham
Wish it was Man U?
No,
not yet
We'll have them in the final!
Yeah, right

Find the ground
Park the car
Down a n
a
r
r
o
w
lane to the away end turnstiles.

They open the gates
Round the back of the stand
out onto the terrace:
Hmm, not bad
better floodlights than ours
Toilets?
An unlit hole
Food?
Mmm, nice sausage roll
Hot coffee

Rovers walk out onto the pitch!
they wave
we wave
I smile
they go back inside

Soon - they're out again
Warming up

Oh, where's Guy?
He's not out yet
Reckon Trought'll start?
Not sure
What about Lee, though?

They read the team's out:
get our players names right for once!
That's right:
it's Ip-oo-ah!
And Cure-e-ton
And Trout
( Not Eye-pooa, Curtain and Troff )

About to kick off
Rainbow over the pitch
( good omen? )
Who the f**king hell are you?
Whooo-oo the f**king hell are YOU
R rrrr-rrr
O ohh-ohhhh
V vee-ee
E eee-ee
R rrr-rrr
S esss-ss
The ROVERS
The ROVERS

C'mon Gas!!

Nearly half time, still 0-0
Full back Stephane gets the ball
goes past, can't quite see, he's still got it...
Shoots:
SCOOOORES!!!

We love you Rovers we do
We love you Rovers we do
We love you Rovers we do
Oh ROVERS WE LOVE YOU

Half time
Mars bars
Elsewhere:
Bristol City 0...
Everton 0
groan

Come on you blues!
C'mon you bloooooes!

Ooh, good save
Get it OUT Rovers
Come on Jamie!
Keep it goin' Gas

....never felt more like singing the blues
when ROVERS WIN and CITY LOSE
Oh Rovers
You got me singing the blues!
We hate Benny Hill and -
- hey, book him ref!
Fuck off number 6!
What, only a yellow?
The referee's a wanker
The referee's a wanker

Come on Meaks... go Meaks!

Yes, yes, come on!
GOALLL!
What?
Offside?
No way!
Piss off referee

Everton, Everton, Everton...
Come on Rovers!
Keep it going

Na na na
Na na na
Na na na
Na na na - na na
Na na na
Na na na na
na na na na -
RO - VERS!

Peep, peep, PEEEEEP

YESSSSSS!

We love you Rovers we do
We love you Rovers we do
We love you Rovers we do
OH ROVERS WE LOVE YOU

Goodnight Irene goodnight Irene
Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene
Goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams!!!

Clap the players

Down the lane
S
I
N
G
I
N
G

Never felt more like singing the blues...!

SUE ASHTON
2nd Jan 1999
Rotherham 0 Rovers 1

In this poem, I've tried to capture the noise and the atmosphere up in the cold at Rotherham for our third round tie in 1999, especially in the latter stages of the match when we clung onto the 1-0 lead and heard of the Sh*t conceding two late goals v Everton. A Perfect Day for the Gas!

SECOND ROUND CUP DRAW BLUES

Well I woke up that morning it was Saturday
I was so full of hope, it would be okay
It's Exeter City, they're division four
They're down at the bottom, couldn't ask for more

Now there's Farnborough Town
And Boreham Wood too
But the Gas didn't make it
The Gas never do

Well I went down the stairs and had three Weetabix
This just could be the day that Rovers scored six
You can't keep on losing to inferior teams
This might be the season of Wembley dreams

Now there's Rushden & Diamonds
And Hednesford Town too
But the Gas didn't make it
The Gas never do

Well I went up to Tesco's, it wasn't so bad
The children came with me, just helping their Dad
And we got round so quick, the shopping was done
Looking forward so much to a cup-tie at home

Now there's Sudbury Town
And Colwyn Bay too
But the Gas didn't make it
The Gas never do

Well I got to the game, it was sunny and bright
But we had no answer to Exeter's might
We had twenty-one coprners but lost 2-1
I suppose we were lucky to reach round one

Now there's Northwich Victoria
And St Albans too
But the Gas didn't make it
The Gas never do

A C ASHTON
16th November 1996

This is one of my Dad's and it reflects on our exit from the Cup in the first round of the 1996/97 season, in the 2-1 defeat v Exeter.

Poems about... The F.A. Cup

THIS AFTERNOON'S MATCH

MMM, NICE SAUSAGE ROLL

SECOND ROUND CUP DRAW BLUES