Group shot post game with the Torpedo Zil youth team
What a storming game of football we have just played… Post Moscow derby match between Locomotive (“Loco, Loco”) and Torpedo Zil, we gathered signatures on our World Cup ball, like football star trainspotters (a small bottle of ‘nail lacquer’ to protect) and attracted a crowd of young up and coming Torpedo stars whose trainer was only too happy to agree to their demands of an England/Russia showdown on the training ground across the car park.
After no sleep, preparing to leave home myself, I felt like telling the trainer to back off nleave me on the bench for a bit. But this game stops for noone — film, play football, catch ferry, hire car, over tape already beautifully captured shots, remember Ive still not slept, remember sunglasses on top of White Cliffs and all under a Spring dawn sun, over the East, the direction of our travel, totally excited and totally tired.
The gaffers asking me to keep my eyes on the ball, but they close.
More from Moscow soon.
Saturday morning in Amsterdam, tired and sleepy
Tuesday morning in Amsterdam, tired and sleepy
At the time when we arrived, Phil had had no sleep for 72 hours, and I’d only caught a fitful four hours on the first night. We were clocking in at five full days of continuous consciousness between us. Too much.
Many thanks to Jules Howarth, our Dutch manager, for putting us up, showing us around and laying on a great party to make us feel at home in the Dam.
In Flanders
Our first brief pause since leaving English shores was Ypres, in Belgium. We stopped off to try and find the field in which a football game was played between German and British troops during the extraordinary Christmas truce of 1914…
Talking Balls
In the beginning was the Whistle. In this World Cup year, it sounded for me in Battersea Park on the first day of Spring. I had prepared myself for the quest in London, knowing that I would be travelling far from by birthplace, but now that I was in motion, the momentum was starting to build around me.
Kick off to Korea
Dark 4 : Light 6 (a.e.t.)
played at Battersea Park
Attendance: 56
The captains get the game going
Surely not since Hampden in 1960 has a crowd been privileged to see such an exhilarating game of football. Played on a surface that was always going to hamper the graceful artistry of the teams, in a difficult wind creating tricky moustache adhesion problems, with an enthusiastic and partisan crowd, it was no surprise that the first half ended goalless after a nervous start by both sides.
Firstly, a big thank you to everyone who came along on Sunday to play the inaugural game in Battersea Park, whether intentionally or not…
We were featured twice on ITV News yesterday – first at lunchtime, then again in the early evening slot on London Tonight. Only two mistakes in the report… probably quite normal…
Phil being interviewed
Chris being interviewed
Approximately 36 players and one dog gave their all in a thrilling encounter
The Light Shirts played the Dark Shirts in a hard fought encounter on a sunny afternoon in Battersea Park. Final score was Lights 6, Darks 4. These are some pics taken by Caz that capture some of the elation and despair of this 10-goal thriller. Read the match report here.
Pitch 2 in the middle of Battersea Park
This Sunday, March 24th 2002
Kick Off 2pm
We will be playing football in Battersea Park in honour of the first ever game under FA rules, which took place in 1864 and the ball we take to the Opening Ceremony will be kicked for the first time. ANYONE is welcome, however good or bad you are, wherever you come from and whichever sex you belong to. So come on down and watch or play. If you want to play please get to the pitch 1.30pm. We are hoping to get hold of 22 old style strips but in case we don’t, please bring along a dark and a light coloured shirt with your oldest looking shorts, we’ll pick teams, however big (playing a tag substitute system) and kick off at 2pm. No rules first half and then a referee for the second! See you there. If it looks like rain… bring an umbrella!
