Something happened today which has never happened before. I was hailed at a football game. So many times this has happened to Nicktor when I’ve been with him that I think there’s something odd if he doesn’t know someone. Tonight, however, things were a bit different.
We had visited the Farnham Town Football Club social club for a pint before heading through the very narrow alleyway to buy a ticket before heading into the ground. Suddenly a yell of “Hey, Gary!” stopped me in my tracks. It was Andrew.
Oddly enough, Andrew and I have been trying to meet up for a coffee for…well, ages, but he keeps having problems sending me replies. I thought it was because he wanted to avoid me but I doubt he’d have hailed me if this was true.
It seems his dad played for FTFC back in the day, so he’s been coming to the ground for a very long time. I told him it was my first time. We then wandered down to the end that Farnham was attacking so Nicktor could get some photos. Andrew stayed on the halfway line.
There’s something brilliant about a football ground where you can stand against a breeze block wall mere feet from the touchline, so close you can hear the players breathe. This is my favourite type of ground. Okay, it’s a lot of standing up (or leaning, as I call it) but it’s much more immediate, it puts you more in touch with the game.
There’s also a lot to be said for a ground with a weed bound tractor in it.
This was in an area which Nicktor called the Lawnmower Graveyard. And there were a few and not a lot of mown grass. In fact, it appeared that the grass was winning as it very slowly ate the mowers.
As for the game…Nicktor, quite rightly, said it was all about “…hoofing the ball…” from one end of the ground to the other. There’s not a lot of skill or finesse in this kind of play. He kept insisting that they play the game on the ground, “…keep the ball on the deck!“
The players, however, didn’t listen. They were too busy listening to everyone on the pitch yelling all manner of inane instructions, like “Concentrate, Charlie!” and “Ref, he’s tying up his shoelaces.” And, possibly my favourite “We didn’t ask her to come on!” in reply to the referee when the Farnham physio ran onto the pitch to see to a player on the ground.
Farnham Town managed to keep the ball on the ground long enough to score three really good goals, winning 3-0 against the visiting Sandhurst side, who could probably have saved themselves a trip.
Ignoring the level of skill on display, it was a lovely night out which I thoroughly enjoyed. I even managed to set a date for meeting Andrew for a coffee next Sunday.
Actually, the only things I found irritating were the incredibly cheap people who stood in the car park and watched the entire game for free rather than support their local team for the measly sum of £7 (you can see them in the back of the photo above) and the sadness surrounding the social club where people in masks wandered around like lost souls.
I feel like I’m in the dystopian future.
Today, this happened
In 2012, the World Heart Foundation decided to make today World Heart Day. It reasoned that because most people around the world had a heart and died when it was diseased, it should do something about it. Like inform people I guess.
People are encouraged to educate themselves about the dangers of various forms of living in order to limit the risk of a sudden heart attack. Also people are asked to form a heart with their hands. The way the South Koreans do.
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), of which heart disease is one, account for around 17.9 million deaths a year, so it’s quite handy to know what you can do to help yourself.
Unfortunately, in 2020, heart disease is not longer important because the coronavirus has taken over the planet. Today it was reported that 1 million people have probably died from Covid-19. So, if you have heart disease, too bad.
But you can still form a heart with your hands.
