Kalisz: All for Football and Football for All

If we think about it, football has a massive and positive impact on our society. Supporting your local team and getting yourself up to the grounds on a weekend afternoon just epitomises what we are all about in our great nation. The Britons that wear the footballing scarf of fans work their socks off for their families, which can be strenuous and stressful, especially in this current climate. But whether it`s the heat of keeping above the flooding financial water, or biting your lip in the bitterly cold, people know where to go to forget about the worries of modern day living. It`s to the stands, with burger and chips in hand, to enjoy a meaty encounter of English League Football.

I`ve been a football supporter for a handful of years and I could certainly offer an anecdote or two where football has impacted me positively. At my time of life, the pressures I face are scraping together the money to fuel the mighty Stoke City memorabilia filled fiesta, actively searching for an employer actually wanting to invest in me rather than advertising for ‘experience` (how are we supposed to gain experience without being trained and trusted in the first place?), and obviously making sure the content on here is entertaining and readable despite me occasionally rambling on about some drivel. But my release valve is heading up to The Britannia Stadium and singing my voice box to ruins in support of my beloved team. I`ve met some opposition fans along the way, who I`ve had a chat and a laugh with, but even though we support different clubs we are all in the same boat. We agree that the situations we face aren`t really the best, but for at least 90 minutes, being able to put those worries aside and getting stuck into a potentially point winning game is somewhat therapeutic.

It might sound daft but that’s how I see it. A stadium full of people, supporting their local lads, having a sing-song and a good time is exactly what I`d recommend for letting your hair down. Either go by yourself or take your mates or, like me, go with your much loved Grandad who has been a supporter for decades, and has many more anecdotes than I have. Whoever you take, altogether we become a community of people, routing for the same cause. These times are tight and it feels like a fight to secure brighter futures, but isn`t nice to focus and something else for a change? Even if our beloved Stoke fluff their chances and lose the game!

The summer has been a long and boring one, so I was extremely pleased to see the Europa League games against Hajduk Split rescue me from my spiralling withdrawal symptons. Now I`m very much looking forward to the Premier League game against Chelsea, the first of the season and it all starts next week!!! I`ll make sure Grandad takes his earmuffs.