Poetry - April 2025

Erosion

The tide comes hurtling in
The defences are trying to hold
But with all the water in the waves
And the bitter wind and cold
It's not before long we see
There's a mass of coastal erosion
The rocks are starting to crack
And anything close is an explosion
Waiting to happen down below
As the rocks soften up more
With the pressure of the water
It's not long before the next roar
Of a tidal wave hitting the cliff
And then there's a loud bang
As the mass of rock face crashes
Down into the soft white sand
The landscape is changing
The homes by the sea are no more
The erosion is leaving things destroyed
And you only know there'll be more.

(Lots of coastal damage and erosion over the last few years, and seeing cliff faces crash into the sea is a somewhat scary and dramatic thing to view.)

Ruining the FA Cup

Being somewhat of a football traditionalist
I really do love seeing my team in the FA Cup
From the potential giant killings to going to Wembley
It held a special place in my heart growing up
But now with all the recent changes being made
It seems like no matter how good the football may be
The FA just seem to want to bow to everyone else
And not protect their historic and classic property
Scrapping replays was just a move way too far
With the drama of another game giving us excitement
Instead it's a turgid 0-0 and going to penalties
Where the ninety minutes was football excement
The glory for those lower league teams to beat someone
Just feels a lot less than it really should be
Because for them the victory should be special
Just as special for those actually getting to Wembley
Also having the semi finals there cheapens it a lot
As it should be only there for me for the final
Just to satisfy the corporate hospitality people
Who will be having their beer and food - so dull
The real fan wants that glory of getting there
Because they have had to battle through a semi
Where the netural round is rocking with both sets of fans
And where the incentive is plain for all to see
Lastly having the final during a league season
Does not give it the showpiece at the end
Where all the football world focusses on Wembley
And that decision does drive me round the bend
So to the FA: stop ruining your own compeittion
Just for the need of clubs' corporate greed
Instead think of the glorious moments you could provide
And proper fans ask you listen and take heed.

(I love the FA Cup as a genuine football fan. I want the FA to stop faffing around with it and give it the respect it should deserve rather than devalue it again and again.)

The Cult of Personality

Why do we all want to be someone?
Do we all want to be someone more famous?
Is there a sense we'll never reach that?
And why do we all need to cause such fuss?
They are questions we all have asked ourselves
As the cult of personality hits in full flow
Someone has been on a reality TV show
And now they're just presenting whilst on the go
It does feel like you need one step up to make it
And there are so many avenues to be near
Get all the benefits that come with it
And not have to think about how it would appear
There has to be another way of being someone
Through hard work, grit and determination
It seems though that these days
Anyone can be personality in this nation.

(I want to be this, I want to be that, I want to be like him or her off the telly. Really? Really?)

The Seventeen Day Marathon

It's that time of year
When I'm glued to BBC2
Not just for any old programme
But something I adore, too
It's off to the Crucible in Sheffield
As the World Championship is on
Seventeen days of drama unfolds
With frames of uninhibted tension
Presented by the brilliant Hazel Irvine
With Steve Davis and John Parrott
The Winter Gardens becomes their home
And the fans who fancy a pot
On the table in the Cue Zone next door
Wanting to get on the box
Whilst the players inside the Crucible
Do their best to sink the long pots
When it goes down to one table
There's no place like it for drama
And that's not even with a play on
But instead, the snooker Nirvana.

(Still a classic tournament. And now with the proper theme tune reinstated on BBC Two. Oh yes.)

Cat and Leaves Haiku

Brian sees a leaf
He chases it with his paws
As the wind gets fierce.

(Brian the cat will see a leaf blow in the wind and it's his mission to get it!)