My poem, Death of a Football Club, appeared in the Verses United anthology, which was published by County Durham Books, supported by Northern Arts and edited by Ian Horn in 1993. The poem records the demise of the old Aldershot F.C. in 1992. Now sadly out of print, the book also includes poems by Atilla the Stockbroker, Tony Harrison, Tom Pickard, Wes Magee and the renowned Liverpool poet, Adrian Henri, plus many more. Also included is an introduction from TV presenter Lord Melvyn Bragg and a foreword by the late England football manager Sir Bobby Robson. Death of a Football Club was also published in 90 Minutes football magazine and the Aldershot News.
Death of a Football Club
(Aldershot F.C. 1926-1992)
As an old faithful
he’d been here for every game.
Sixty solid years
and then this grief
that brings a harsh, ensuing wind
around the ground
as men in reluctant suits
prepare his coffin.
More proud undaunted ghosts
glide across the pitch
towards the East Bank stand.
Memories of Melia, Howarth.
A courteous shroud
hovering where the floodlights
gleamed and flickered. Memories
of Charlton, Best. The Shots one up!
Dads who came as children
with their dads
mourning their lost Saturdays
and a thousand other friends.
Reality forms its own cortege,
a climate no one
wished to comprehend.
But now just as we feared
there is an end,
a bitter tear that reaches from the heart
at this strange funeral.
A moment
when the stillness is complete
and all that’s left
is memories.
(Note: This was my last poem to be published under the pseudonym Mal Cielsak)
Aldershot F.C. following a 3rd Round FA Cup replay win against Huddersfield Town
during the 1969/70 season. Incidentally, my first season supporting Aldershot.
A definitive selection of Mal's poetry, entitled Songs Without Music, 'The Wedding', is available HERE
