Marxist. Trade Unionist. Socialist-feminist. Author. Poet. Speaker. Tutor. RMT ex-Exec. Workers' Liberty. Autie. Bi. PUFC fan.

Sport

The Match and the Patch

Submitted by Janine on 06 May 2023 at 16:48

Football fans

from Northern towns

hit the capital city

Sharp-dressed, pretty

 

sure to take the opportunity

to take in a record shop

and rifle through vinyl

score a winner

reach the final

 

Make their way to Covent Garden

Soul City stocks lots

of what they're after

Not the latest but the dateless

Run

Submitted by Janine on 03 September 2021 at 13:47

Her cover drive and how she ran
are now haram
under the rule of the Taliban

Can she stay in? For sure she can
She can't be out without a man
in ancient, new Afghanistan

She'd tackle assumptions and she'd score
but won't be playing any more
She's fallen foul of holy law

Women footballers escaping the Taliban

Submitted by Janine on 29 August 2021 at 19:49

Published in Women's Fightback 26, Autumn/Winter 2021

Kelly Lindsey, former head coach of the Afghanistan women’s football team – and before that, US international player – spoke to supporters before Lewes FC women’s home friendly against West Ham on 22 August. She has been working to secure safe evacuation of footballing women and girls from Afghanistan, along with the director of women’s football, a human rights lawyer and FIFPRO (the international professional footballers’ federation, their trade union body). “For seven days straight we’ve created a team in the US, a team in Australia, a team in Europe, we have passed the baton all day and all night to try to keep the process going and try to keep the pressure on and try to keep pushing the government and try to keep pushing sports organisations.“

Down and Up with the Mighty Posh

Submitted by Janine on 06 May 2021 at 09:01

We only needed a draw.
We didn't even need to score
unless we let one in.
We didn't even need to win,

Just make sure they didn't.
The point the draw would have given
and the two it would take away
from the rivals we happened to be playing that day

would have been enough.
Surely an ask that's not too tough.
Surely a task even we couldn't fluff.

Abuse Report Condemns Failure to Protect Young Footballers

Submitted by Janine on 07 April 2021 at 13:00

This article was published under a different title in Solidarity 587.

On 17 March, Clive Sheldon QC reported on the investigation he chaired into the sexual abuse of boys in football between 1970 and 2005. Five days later, the BBC began broadcasting its three-part documentary on the subject. Both the report and the documentary revealed the horrifying extent of abuse, the authorities’ failure to protect the boys, and the long struggle for justice.