Friday, 19 February 2010

When football turns sour

And no i'm not talking about the Liverpool game last night :P

I'm talking about the game of football (or soccer) i've just returned from.
Well, not really a game, just a simple kick-about but it did not end well.


Things started fine, the meet had been organised since earlier in school today and everything was great up until the end....


We all met, and firstly, we had just one big kick about with 8 on each team. It was a lot more enjoyable than where we usually go as you don't have to pay for this place, you just have to take a chance as to whether it is locked or not.

It wasn't locked luckily.

So as i said, we all started and had one big game which lasted about an hour maybe an hour and a half. After which we took a ten minute break and then we started to play "cuppy" which is just teams of two playing against each other with one person in goal.
Somebody had to leave early so i voluteered to go in goal as i dont enjoy cuppy a lot.

This is where things turned bad.

One of the guys (call him D) who was there brought along his little brother who is about 12 i think.
I missed a shot (not hit by him) that i should have saved and he's giving me abuse about how i didn't save it.
I just tell him to get lost, i would have liked to see him do better and then Steven agrees, to which this guy gets annoyed and for the remainder of the game has a mini-slanging match with Steven.
Needless to say, his comebacks were awful and Steven just left him stuttering but, as this boy was someone elses little brother, D starts to get involved too.
His little brother was only acting all tough coz he knew D was around to defend him.
He's pretty small and wouldn't dare say anything if his brother wasn't around.

So, the tension slowly rises, the insults getting worse and worse.
(And yes, gay insults were aplenty. Particularly the phrase "batty boy" which is just a slang term for poof. How nice....)

So, the insults got worse and threats started now. Step 2 i suppose.
Then D confronts Steven (and this guy is a big boy) and says he'll do him in if he doesn't shut up.
Wasn't ever going to happen tho.
He backs off eventually.

A few mins later the owner says our time is up and we depart.
We're all walking to the car park, Steven's mum was giving me a lift, and the insults and threats continue but now others are getting involved as well.
Some trying to calm it down, some adding to the insults, taking sides.

I tried to play peace maker and put on some music but it didnt really work.


Steven told the boy not to worry if he gets confused about liking guys as he attempts to go through puberty. He looked at me for back up but i just blank him.
I wasn't getting involved in their petty fight and i sure as hell wasn't about to back up his comment there.


Steven's mum was waiting for us in the car park and this was still going on, his....almost step-dad was in the driving seat.

So Steven elevates things by saying to everyone "See you guys, have a great weekend, especially you" (pointing at D's brother)
D and his brother both went nuts and regardless of Steven's mum being around, start hurling more abuse to which Steven's stepdad steps out the car and asks if there's trouble, they reply no and Steven's stepdad returns, "Good, coz if you lay a finger on him (Steven) i'll break your fucking nose"


Wow. Srs bsns.

Took me by surprise i must say but it definetely shut them up.


So we drive away with Steven, grin on face, waving to D and co.
To which hand gestures were returned.
He just laughed.



A pleasant kick about almost literally turned into a kick about.
Not what i came to play football for.

To be honest, Steven and D's brother were both as bad as each other, i dunno why one couldn't just turn a blind eye and leave it.
It almost turned into a brawl and i suspect it would have done if there were no adults around.

But this kid is just so full of himself.
He's about a foot shorter than Steven and was only messing with him coz his brother was around.
He's a coward.

Steven has coward like features to tho, in fact, he's pretty much all talk, has never been in a fight in his life and that much is obvious. His mouth will get him into trouble one day.

Thankfully, there was no fighting, but plenty of abuse and threats and its not going to die down i don't think.
School on Monday i suspect D will be wanting to continue it, coz he's a prick in my opinion, but i have no idea for sure what will happen.


At the end of the day, the whole thing just comes to putting on a tough front even though neither D's brother or Steven can fight. Even if it did happen it would have just been laughable to watch. Just like anyone who puts on this front - all mouth but do they have anything to back it up with? No.

But this so-called bravado seems to be something big in the area i live in. Or, in this part of the UK anyway. I hate the culture where i live and this bravado is just another thing that makes this culture worse.

I'm perhaps putting a bad slant on it. Where i live is ok. My street and the surrounding streets are fairly safe, the people and houses are fine but there are many no-go zones around.

One of the few good things about the area is the education.
The public schools are some of the best achieving in the country but it's no real saving grace, the culture will still continue.


I hate the culture, just people acting tough but in reality they're not. Fights can and do start over minor, petty things.


Today was just another example of this but i know one thing for certain, i have no intention to be any part of it.


Cheers,
Rowan


13 comments:

  1. The culture is everywhere. Here in the US, you can barely move without someone yelling at you for being alive. But just like in the UK, it's all talk and no walk. Someone will say they will beat you up, you can take it to mean "I am very angry and I want to scare you so you don't do it again." Those are the kinds of people I *love* to play around with. I keep pestering them, knowing fully well that they will do absolutely nothing to me. I don't do it out of meanness. I do it to show them that they don't scare me and have no real power over my mind.

    If the boys in your area are like most other boys, they will forget about it by tomorrow. Here's to hoping they do, because nobody wants an enemy.

    -An Avid Reader Anthony

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  2. When guys all over the world reach a certain age the testosterone starts pumping and they begin to play their silly macho games. Violence proves nothing, and the sooner they grow out of it the better. Guys from harsher backgrounds have less in their lives, so this stuff means more to them.

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  3. Jeez, over eleven hundred words to describe an argument. Rowan, you sure have a gift for gab. But an interesting read!

    Love, Jamie

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  4. Hey Rowan, I hope you welcome my comment here. I've been reading your blog for a little while but never posted before.
    About the kick about, take it out of your mind. For things to happen, they need to be devised fist, so sweep it off your mind and relax.
    As Anthony put it, this goes everywhere. And I can tell you this, a dog barks when it smells you're frighten, but could also barks when "it" is frighten. So it looks like bravado is a bluff thing, the curtain they put in front to hide their fear. I bet you are more man than all those brats put together. No worries.

    Take it "with soda" man...

    Love peace & hugs Acidance

    PS: I'd like to talk to you sometime. You seem to be a nice enough guy. I'll send you my e-mail so you can add me so we can chat; if you wish, that is...

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  5. BTW.
    Talking about violence and wondering "where did the love go?" Do you know who Kasabian was???

    Acidance

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  6. Yes, i have done my research on my favourite bands, believe me.
    Kasabian is named after Linda Kasabian, the woman who was an eye-witness in the Charles Manson murders and who helped prosecute him and his followers. Was she not the getaway driver or something?

    I'm not too knowlegable on the case but i'm sure that's the origin of the name.

    As far as i remember, i read that one of the band members was reading about Charles Manson and thought Kasabian was a good band name.
    I can't disagree.

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  7. I hate boys that do that. They do it up here a lot to Rowan. They call them shitkickers here, cowboys with attitude. Like everyone else say they bark bigger then the bit. My dad always says the one that yells the loudest is usually the winner. Hugs JJ

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  8. So Rowan you are a lover and not a fighter. Me thinks that's a good thing.
    I'm impressed by your attitude and I am also impressed by your knowledge and passion about your fav bands.I was the same about the 60's bands [and believe it or not I still remember a bit of it].
    JJ love what your dad says - the one that yells the loudest is the winner. When a horse treds on my toe I'm always the winner.
    Regards Stef

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  9. Rowan you are smart, & I am glad you are not like Steve, & others. Some people always have some drama going on with their lives. Give me piece and calm any day.

    I hope you have a friend that is a real peer, someone that is your equal. Instead of have to hang with jerks because there no one else.

    I haven't gotten through all of your blog yet but I will.
    A.Sterling

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  10. Hi Rowan,
    It was Bertrand Russel who hit the nail on the head when he said, “The secret to happiness is to face the fact that the world is horrible”.

    Don't little Hitlers really piss you off! That's what we called them (oops, showing my age).

    You did say that little D only acted like that 'cos his big bro was there. What would happen if you passed on an idle observation to D how he was being used by his little brother? How little D wouldn't have done what he did if D weren't there? You could calm things down by saying Steven did the same when his dad arrived.

    I suspect D would listen and be rather pissed off at little D. But you wouldn't hear about it, it would be 'kept in the family' - unless little D got a black eye (wishful thinking).

    What will you do if your lil bro were to set you up like that?

    r.jimlad

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  11. Rowan, I thought I should come back and listen to your Kasabian. To be fair. I like them, not my favorite but I am going to look for more of their music. Have you ever heard of "Toad the Wet Sprocket"?
    A.Sterling

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  12. G'Day again Rowan,
    I followed Sterling's lead and listened to Kasabian. Surprise, I like it! I see why you like the track: plenty of bass in it, starting right at the beginning and continuing right thro' to the sudden stop.

    Thanks for widening my horizons
    r.jimlad

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  13. The old fight game eh. I found the best way to confront aggression was to laugh at it. Got me out of a lot of trouble, that and beating people off with a rolled-up newspaper; now that's come out wrong somehow. I mean like a fencing sort of thing, not a w**king sort of thing, though that works too. Sometimes.

    love fb

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