Ashes to Ashes

**Jimmy** · 25th June 12, 10:49 AM

With apologies to our English friends, I thoroughly enjoyed the bi-annual event of the demise of their soccer team and in the usual method of execution.
Yes before you say I know that at least they qualified

**English Bloke** · 25th June 12, 10:54 AM

We watched on the big tele in the TV lounge here in the southern sector North sea. There was only one man cheering at the end, and he's from Aberdeenshire and has an Italian Grandmother. The rest of us were weeping into our luke-warm tea. (sob!)

That said, I thought the Italians deserved it.

**Grizzly** · 25th June 12, 10:59 AM

Jimmy no worries we were rubbish. At nearly 50 years old I am searching for my footie boots because I am sure I could do better than the overpaid non entities who represent us. We were outplayed by Italy and only made it through to our ritual humiliation of the penalty shoot out by luck. There should be a mass cull of the current team with only one or two surviving. Time to go back to the drawing board. Again.....

**cessna152towser** · 25th June 12, 11:15 AM

Well as a friend of mine described it, many Scots like to see England succeed in reaching the later stages of the Euro and World soccer tournaments and yet wouldn't want them to then win the final because the English would go on and on about it like they still do about 1966.
Reaching the quarter finals is something to be proud of, I only wish Scotland could get that far.
It really is ironic that other countries are so much better at a game which we invented.

**creagdhubh** · 25th June 12, 12:10 PM

Originally Posted by cessna152towser

Well as a friend of mine described it, many Scots like to see England succeed in reaching the later stages of the Euro and World soccer tournaments and yet wouldn't want them to then win the final because the English would go on and on about it like they still do about 1966.
Reaching the quarter finals is something to be proud of, I only wish Scotland could get that far.
It really is ironic that other countries are so much better at a game which we invented.

***

**English Bloke** · 25th June 12, 12:31 PM

What befuddles me is these fine specimens of English sporting prowess, these peak professional athletes, whose service to the glorious game apparently justifies wages of hundreds of thousands of pounds a week... each!... Were mostly walking at seventy minutes and could barely manage more than a gentle jog. More effort required me thinks.

Edit: Or perhaps performance related pay.

**Grizzly** · 25th June 12, 01:41 PM

Originally Posted by English Bloke

What befuddles me is these fine specimens of English sporting prowess, these peak professional athletes, whose service to the glorious game apparently justifies wages of hundreds of thousands of pounds a week... each!... Were mostly walking at seventy minutes and could barely manage more than a gentle jog. More effort required me thinks.

Edit: Or perhaps performance related pay.

I couldnt agree more John

**Chas** · 25th June 12, 02:22 PM

Back in '66, I was 14 and lived in Bristol. Every Saturday Bristol Rovers (quite a lower division team) used to hold a youth training session. At the time they were one of only four or five teams in the country that did that.

Boys used to cycle in from all over just for the chance to maybe get to watch. Lads in my class would get up before dawn to cycle 20 miles over the Dundry hills (no mean feat in itself) on old worn out butcher's boy bikes to be first in the queue. 150, maybe 200 boys every Saturday morning. The gates would open and the trainers would come out. They'd walk down the lines, give a kid a ball and say "Dribble past me". If he could, he got to stand in the other line. The weeding out continued, 15 minutes later, they had 25 boys and the gates were closed. A second weeding out and five got to train - 20 got to watch.

Later when they were all hot and tired and hungry and thirsty the training was over and they had to cycle the 20 miles back again. And then next week they all did it all over again.

Where is that hunger today? Where is that pride? Certainly not amongst the professionals.

If it were me, I would sack the lot and publicly tell them that they weren't good enough to represent their country.

The only pay they should get is the honour of having played for their country. That should be the highest honour.

Regards

Chas

**McClef** · 25th June 12, 02:25 PM

What we need is the English Football team playing the Italian Rugby Union Team!

**Grizzly** · 25th June 12, 02:46 PM

Originally Posted by Chas

Back in '66, I was 14 and lived in Bristol. Every Saturday Bristol Rovers (quite a lower division team) used to hold a youth training session. At the time they were one of only four or five teams in the country that did that.

The only pay they should get is the honour of having played for their country. That should be the highest honour.

Regards

Chas

*** to that Chas

You may be interested to know that I was born in Bristol and grew up just north of there and it was a regular occurence to go to Eastville to cheer on the Rovers, sad that it is no longer there having been torn down to make way for a Tesco Superstore. (other supermarkets are available).