I wrote this as a facebook note on the 5th of September 2008 - a week before England beat Croatia in Zagreb 4-1 towards the beginning of the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign;

"I don't give a flying sod about the national team and I'm delighted that I wont be subject to any of the footage of the coming games against Andorra and Croatia as Setanta have the rights and no terrestrial channel has bought the rights to show the highlights ... excellent, no temptation there then.

But I can't help but think back to my first memories of Football, let alone England - Italia '90.

I was sat in my parents pub watching the game with the locals, when Chris Waddle missed that penalty, Brain Moore’s words '...and England sad, sadly are out...' still ring in my ears as clearly as they did then as a 7 year old boy.

I cried, which set of a river of tears in almost every other Englishman in the Saloon Bar at the time.

Come England's penalty loss in the 2006 World Cup I didn't shed a tear, I was at the end of my tether about being an England fan.

By the time England lost Croatia at Wembley last Autumn it was a relief to be able to say I'm not an England fan any more. It was very much like ending a relationship with a girl you thought you loved, but over time you realised she isn't the one for you and you decided that you were better off without her, so you dumped her - seriously, it's not you, it's me. I've just fallen out of love.

Having said all this, I'm a patriotic lad and I'm proud to be English - oh what I'd give be 7 years old again and know what being an England fan feels like."


I'm delighted to report that my inner 7 year old, thawing from the frozen wastes of the past 19 years of International Football Tournaments, will be delighted to have the opportunity to return in time for the Kick Off of the 2010 World Cup at Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg on the 11th of June.

For you see one man has truly grabbed my attention - Fabio Capello.