Normally you would be in the expert hands of Andrew and he would be writing this up, however he’s on the old Eurostar going or coming, to here or there so I’ve volunteered to stand in or write in or write up, and no doubt will soon be standing down.Perhaps it is “writes up?” but knowing things are,Wrights probably down after yesterday.
Except I haven’t seen the game, I heard it.The old Blind Pew experience!
I listened “in” to the excellent service supplied by AFC on Arsenal player, as for us located outside of the UK, the BBC puts blocks on Five Live over the radio-wave borders.Thanks Bleeb (as good ol’Fins would say).
Dan Roebuck is the commentator general (and a fine asset to AFC he is) and in this occasion he was ably assisted (as he often is) by ex-Gunner, Stephen Hughes.
If you don’t listen “in” to the match-day coverage, aside of you genuinely missing an articulate commentary on the action, you are also missing out on the in-jokes. For example, whose wearing the lucky(ha ha that old chestnut!)scarves, or if the lucky brussels sprout that a chap from Spain puts into his freezer on match days is working and now after last night we had the ‘lucky’ cabbage that somebody else shoved in the freezer in order for us to win the game.
And then there’s the Gooners who knit while the games in play, who go by the name of Sarah and Megan for whom or what is well beyond moi, but it seems to sooth the old nerves apparently and good on them. The microcosm of superstition in Gooner-world is mightily fascinating. Who knows how bizarre it can get, a great index of possibilities?Somebody even offered to get in a freezer for luck themselves yesterday(no joke) rather than shoving the lucky cabbage in there —- all in the name of Lady Luck. How she is courted! (why is she a she pray tell?)…
Anyway,from what I could hear, King Mesut’s pre-match urge to the fan-base gebirge was to be as loud as possible in order to sweep the team along,and it certainly sounded that way,which meant high octane excitement to those of us imagining the in-play. And the whistle blew and the game got under way.
All I can recall from the first half is that the Ox messed up a chance, and we seemed to be doing well and then the Ox took a knock and tried to play on, and limped off into the tunnel at HT. I think most Arsenal fans thought(myself included) that we might be able to win this game,yet really
I was terrified that the old Vampire might start tearing us apart not with his teeth but with his skill, but obviously the crosses were out and everyone had scoffed a load of garlic,but he certainly came close to scoring at the end of the half. Mind you old Bela Lugosi, hes a good player despite his biting antics.
However the Ox came on for the second half, but couldn’t run the injury off and he went back down the tunnel again.
The crowd in the stadium didn’t sound as loud in the second, yet I recall some intense pressure by Arsenal including a close chance by Larry and then Barcelona making a counter attack and scoring. The commentary team echoed that strange feeling that you get from watching (or listening) an Arsenal game,the kind where you hope for something extraordinary and it starts to slip away and everyone’s mouths starts drooping like Bruce Grobbelar’s moustachio (for those of you too young to know, Bruce was a famous TV chef). After that there weren’t too many jokes by the voices on the internet radio. And nobody gave a crépe about the cabbage, brussel or the bloke in the freezer.Maybe hes still there,nice and still, next to the peas?
As the Arsenal were still hanging on and who knows what might happen, I started wondering if they could they repeat the same result as back in 2011? Time flies doesn’t it?What a game that was, and regardless of his loyalty to AFC, old Van der Graf-Percy could certainly strike a ball.What a game Jack had that night too, and how difficult things have been for him since.
Switch! back to the game… a defensive mistake by Per lead to What a Mess by Frank Muir getting hacked by the Flamkuchen and a penalty it was.And became converted by the big Mess.At that point everyone seemed to think it was over.And after a bit of added time it was.
I’m personally not part of the tweety-pie world or go on the devils-own blogs anymore as life is too short,but if I was the Comté de St.Germain (living forever) and took the luxury of looking at Tweetsville and the blogs, I’m sure I would observe the frothing phlegm and finger pointing meltdown on at Per,Larry,AOC and the Flammkuchen. Not that the critical voices could do any better themselves.Yes, I know we’ve all aloud to have an opinion, but as Alvy Singer would say ” do you have to give it so loud?”
If they could then perhaps they might have played for the Arsenal,and taken a bit of responsibility, but such is the phantasy world of armchair illusion is that when you sit in it, you too believe that you can be a Arsenal player of the highest calibre, either that or become weird bloke Davros and try to take over the world or the internet or even your own living room?
You see the armchair converts you into a bionic Gunner.The sideburns of Charlie George, the left foot of Liam Brady, the grit of Tony Adams and the rest from Mr. Henry. and the intelligence of that old Arsenal fan,Einstein. My Arsenal.Even Gus Cesar was better than any of them thar grumble-weeds. But I wont tell them if you don’t.
Well, what can we do? Perhaps listen to the tune by Rodgerd and Frankenstein “Happy Talk” that was in a film called South Pacific, made in 1958 about life on a farm in the mid- west during Christmas. Anyway some lyrics go like this…
“Happy talking talking happy talk, talk about things you like to do, if you don’t have a dream how you gonna have a dream come true?” um beep beep, um beep beep-that bit isn’t in the lyrics though and it goes on a bit longer, but ye get the point?
Yousa thinks that’s potty? Now way guy, that’s the only way,even if old Lao Tze says it aint! Per needs support, what the point of frying his Arsenal when he knows what happened?So do all the other lads and so does Arsène. They dont need our advice, but they do need our support and belief. After all we now have to take the great Norvern overland road to the Underworld of Hades, the great lair of our old arch enemies them Red Devils.So hopefully somebody will bring a bell,book and candle and do the job rather than asking the brussel sprout kami for help?
The Manure breath-beasts will be smacking their lips in anticipation, and our old Puddleglums will be glumming their puddles,but thats Steww’s job to speculate on that one.And I’m sure his preview will be great as always…
Chins up me old Gooners,where there’s life there’s hope.Plenty to sing for, and we still haven’t been booted out of the CL,yet…
And if you lean in a little you can hear in the somewhere in the background the sound of Brian Moore’s commentary “and that was a great goal by Sammels” “two goals in something like 90 seconds”, a bit echoey?-yes a bit, faint?-maybe, but full of passion…and according to some, history repeats itself, and then there’s the old 5th Dimension,no not that band or album, but the dimension where all possibilities are already being played out and all things can happend…mmmm think on!
Right,I’m off to see what’s in the freezer, lucky something I hope! and oh yes,COYG!
Positively Arsenal 
I lost my appetite when Leicester scored with one minute to go….now I know how their fans feel…
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SAMchez COYG @smeagol_11 18m18 minutes ago
So if sanogo keeps scoring for Charlton will fans rate him highly like they did with Afobe?
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http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20160227/arsenal-train-ahead-of-man-united-game
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Yaya Sanogoals. Eat your heart out lads:
https://twitter.com/schtonko/status/703650812795478017
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A5-still rummaging around in there! Hopefully I will find the answer to all my spelling mistakes…
FH-many thanks as always.
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