Well, that’s it then, for four more years,
We’ve been let down: reduced to tears,
Now we must see some big heads rolling,
Whilst, for Sven, the bell is tolling.

They’re coming home; they’re coming home,
The England lads are coming home,
St. George’s flags all hanging limply,
Not good enough, to put it simply.

Some loyal fans believed the hype,
Which, in the end, was seen as tripe,
Exciting football? That it ain’t,
Reminds me just of drying paint.

For fans supporting ING-ER-LAND,
Much better things they must demand,
We failed to meet our true potential,
Now speedy action’s most essential.

Under-performance by the team,
Abruptly ends our lovely dream,
The high hopes of the fans left shattered,
Millions of dreams lie torn and tattered,

As soon as Rooney lost his cool,
Our chance became, well, miniscule,
We’d not be crowned ‘Kings of the Castle,’
Can’t even blame his metatarsal.

Ronaldo may have been a factor,
And Carvalho, too,’s a brilliant actor,
But for Rooney there is no excuse,
He must now stew in his very own juice.

First Beckham’s gone, then Wayne’s red mist,
Could this prove to be the catalyst?
We did see grit and determination,
But it ended in humiliation.

When it came down to the penalty kicks,
I felt that we’d be knocked for six,
Then we saw great skill and real bravado,
From the Portuguese ‘keeper, Ricardo.

Our best squad in decades, we’d been told,
But we must improve a hundredfold,
They failed to keep our hopes alive,
Now some must see P45.

There’ll be lots of tears in Baden-Baden,
In ‘POSH’ shops: clubs: the beer garden,
As the sale of Champagne finally flags,
On the departure of the so-called WAGs. **

In general I would like to see,
Much greater use of technology,
But just for the doubtful, BIG decision,
Which we clearly see on television.

The referees’ case I’m not extolling,
For some of them were quite apPOLLing,
But players, too, must take much blame,
Before they ruin this lovely game.

We must really end this dire charade,
Players waving the imaginary card,
Sometimes for yellow and often red,
We should kill it off, right now: stone dead!

It doesn’t seem an English failing,
But certainly needs, I’d say, curtailing,
Though some may smile and others bellow,
The guilty players should get a yellow.

No player should then escape scot-free,
Should he seek to sway the referee,
To pat him on the back: applaud,
Or thank him for a ‘right’ award.

It could be stopped in the highest quarters,
And would be welcomed by real supporters,
It’s just another form of cheating,
And must be soon made self-defeating.

But now’s the time we can reflect,
What did you truthfully expect?
It’ll all be back in twenty-ten,
I doubt I’ll be around by then.

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** One or two people may still not be aware that WAGs is the term given to the ‘Wives & Girlfriends’ of players.

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PS
I believe that Rooney’s initial foul on Carvalho was NOT intentional but his actions thereafter were certainly unwise. Don’t be at all surprised if, come the start of the new season, Cristiano Ronaldo moves on quickly to pastures new in some other country.

George Kirby

(02-07-2006)