Star Soccer

Sunday lunch cleared, curtains drawn;
Crocks are washed and put away.
Time to settle down for that weekly hour
Of the Midlands' football cream.
ATV swings into gear, the music blares -
It's 2.15 and 'Star Soccer' begins...

The bumbling Billy Wright speaks
To camera  - it's a mouthwatering clash;
Derby - Wolves at the Baseball Ground.
Line-ups appear on screen to Hugh Johns'
Dulcet tones - captains shake hands,
In glorious black and white, it's game on.

Early midfield skirmishes, frantic stuff -
Both teams in light shirts, dark shorts;
Not easy for the monochrome viewer.
Half-time, no goals. Advert time...
Beer at home means Davenports,
Double Diamond works wonders.

So it's back to the seventies;
Long hair, long shirts outside shorts.
Crunching tackles, no quarter given.
Winger crosses, striker hits stopper
In mid-air thud - muddied ball
Runs loose, full-back punts clear...

Fans footstamp wooden boards,
And pull bar scarves ever tighter
As sleet slants into their faces.
A tight offside, a disallowed goal;
Tension-filled, but deadlock stays,
Ref blows for time - all square it ends.

Recorded highlights - not quite real
Enough to set the pulses racing,
When you already know the result.
But just to see your team playing
On TV was a treat to savour
In those bygone pre-SKY days.

© Andy Lockett 2006