Lads On Tour

I'm writing this, as I should be finishing up the research methods section of the old dissertation. The power of procrastination has pushed me to clean my bathroom, download this and that on my computer (whoever heard of cloud files? What an idea...), upload photos, start getting stuff sorted for my Chinese 'foreign expert' visa, check flights for my epic Seoul > Barcelona > Ireland > Nanjing August foray, and write up set-lists for the couple of drummers who are interested in jumping into Jimbo's seat when he hits the road at the end of the month. In spite of the fact that I have only a week-and-a-half left until my final exam, there's no sign of the fear. I kind of need it at this stage.

Still, there's always time for a bit of 'lads on tour' action. Tomorrow, a half-dozen of us are heading down to Daejeon for a bit of craic before Jim's last weekend. The last time the six of us went out together... well... I can't really say what happened. It's not that I'm holding back, I just honestly can't really say. My personal rule for this trip is a self-imposed ban on soju (for me: the lads can do whatever they want!), so hopefully that'll keep things under control to some extent at least.

I'm not 100% happy about missing FC Seoul V Daejeon at Seoul World Cup Stadium tomorrow night, but I'll be watching it on the box. Wednesday past was another good night for the boys. Despite fielding an under-strength side, we hammered National League side, Yongin City, 4-0. Caretaker boss Choi Young Soo seems fairly adept at rotating the squad during a very busy May for the club. Dejan came off the bench to fire home a couple, Adi scored a bit of a jammy dodger, and the other was from a debutant, Choi something-or-other. A win against lowly Daegu could put us into the top-six (play-off positions). Surely they'll give Choi Young Soo the nod to carry on - at least until the end of the season... Since taking over from the shambolic Hwangbo Kwan, it has been six matches, five victories, and just the one draw (away from home in the Champion's League, falling victim to a last-minute equaliser). With Derry City defying the odds and pushing Shamrock Rovers at the top of the league, and Man Utd stuttering their way to a record 19th top flight league crown, my football supporter star is on the rise again.

There were a couple of other things I was going to mention but a few of the girls from the office at work just walked in to the coffee shop, so I should probably look busy and get back to my chapter. Have a good weekend!

Last Weekend

Figuratively speaking, I have had my head up my backside all week so I'm only getting around to ranting about all the shoddy football and other events from last weekend. Honestly, I think any team I even thought about liking lost. Derry City went down to an 88th minute sucker punch at home against Sligo Rovers, having missed a penalty (and easy rebound) through new-signing Eamon Zayed in the first half. FC Seoul looked a shadow of the side that looked so great at home last season as they lost their opener 2-0. Unforgivably, it was against arch-rivals Suwon Bluewings. They looked great. Please, no... There aren't many positives to take from that one: Molina was anonymous; the tactics were shot; team selection nonsensical... I can only hope and pray (but to whom?) that we come out with something more positive from our travels to Daejeon Citizen this Saturday. To rub salt in the wounds, Liverpool trounced Man Utd 3-1 at Anfield late on Sunday night. In the eternal words of Peter Cunnah, "things can only get better."

Lots of crap has been going on behind the scenes in life these days but nothing that I can really talk about on here. What I will say is that it may be time to rethink our faith in Seoul as a 'safe' city. A friend got into a taxi in Itaewon on Saturday night only to be robbed at knife-point by someone who had stolen a taxi and later withdrew a significant chunk of cash from her account. She'll get it back, but that's hardly the point. Of course people should be vigilant wherever we live, but I know that we Seoulites often take our personal safety for granted, and maybe lower our guard more than we should. Needless to say, take care...

In the ensuing days, I somehow lost my FC Seoul season ticket (after one use - although I can get it reissued though) and had a big scare when my hotmail account blocked my access. Where do you think all my MA research data is? You got it. Thankfully, I got it sorted and have learned my lesson. The result being is that I no longer think the universe is conspiring against me this week (month and year) so I'm going to quit whining and get on with living.

I'm going to wrap it up here but not before I add another chunk from my old Bebo blog. In a poignant example of the cyclical nature of life, this one is around the time of a break-up about a month after I moved to Seoul. It also really pissed off an ex, as I recall, but I'll post it again - what the hell!? This entry DEFINITELY sounds at least a little gay but, hey, I did write it.

New Year Seoul Blues!!	1/3/07
	Well the New Year hasn't really started as I'd hoped as things have come to a pretty sad conclusion with Becs. I never knew it was such a popular season for it! But I'll be trying to take positives from it like every other shit thing that ever happens. Part of me has been thinking about calling it a day here but having just talked to Rob (expected back here end Feb) I'll prob rough it out. I can see myself having great craic here given time. The events of the last few days came as a massive shock but we're all still friends, etc. I'm also getting a taste of my own medicine and understand a lot of things about the past much better now. Why can't we still be friends Louise? Oh, this is why. Yeah I see it now. Better late than never. No one has died though and I get her reasons. So the story now is that I'm 24, outgoing, hot (hehe) and single in Seoul. Although it isn't really what I want right this sec, it doesn't sound so bad on paper does it? New Years Eve was shit enough because of the timing but also fun in ways. It was random. I preferred last New Years much more (take note tootsythumbs, lol). I'm not back in work til next Monday but rather than mope around I'm trying my very best to explore, socialise, feel good again. I hope all is well with you lot. Do stay in touch, it's always great to hear from you. Someone tell Furey I'll make him listen to SCLUB7 if he doesn't at least email. Tell Jay to join this thing too the postman Pat wannabe. Hope your New Years was...better than mines, lol. All the best, Brian (still smiling)

Same Sport, Different World

What is it that makes us care about one particular sports team over another? When you consider that some people will resort to violence, abuse and even murder to defend the honour of their beloved football club, how likely is it that that self same person could have ended up with a different allegiance if something in his/her past had just gone that little bit differently?

When we were in primary school in Ireland, lunchtime games would soon turn into 'Man Utd V Liverpool' and the race would be on to claim the identity of your favourite players for the duration of our precious free-time. At the time, it didn't occur to us that we were slagging off the British in one breath, before claiming allegiance to a British team from a city most of us had never even been to with the next. The 'Irish links' would be talked-up (legends such as George Best, and lesser greats like Irwin, Houghton, Aldridge, etc.) but none of us ever seemed to be too interested in the clubs we had right on our doorsteps, such as Finn Harps or Derry City.

My connection to Man Utd stemmed, very simply, from my uncle Peter supporting them. I have no idea why he liked them, in particular, and we have no geographical ties to Manchester or anything like that. Still, they were the team I defended to the hilt during corridor football talk. I wanted to be Lee Sharpe, Ryan Giggs, Eric Cantona - Barnes, Clough and Rush were dirty words. Over the years that built up to the point where Man Utd were the only club I cared about really, even though I couldn't explain rationally why...

My earliest experiences of football were at Derry City matches with my Dad, his friend, and his son who was around my age. I guess I was there during our glory days, without even realising it. At the time, I wouldn't say that I paid much attention. I remember the stands being pretty packed, and the kids just wandering about the place probably getting into trouble (which I'm sure I simply watched from a safe distance...). It was only as I matured and became more critical and socially aware that I questioned my loyalty to a foreign team I had no physical link to, and started to identify with the local team, a place I could actually go to and witness my club in action regularly. So started my real relationship with Derry City FC, still going strong today.

Then, just to complicate things, I move to Seoul. Early in my time here I went to K-League games with friends more as something to do (and an excuse to hang out with mates and beers under the pretense of doing something 'different') rather than something I was actually interested in. Yes, the stadium was amazing. Yes, the fans were colourful. Still, I didn't feel anything for this club. If they won, we cheered. If they lost, we didn't exactly need counseling. The quality of football at the time probably didn't help. In that first year, we only ever seemed to see 0-0 draws! And not even the exciting type, at that.

Somewhere, at some undefined point in time, something changed in me. I started to get to know the players, the style, the history (albeit VERY short) and the passion of the fans. I felt myself REALLY looking forward to games and being hungry for information regarding transfers, injuries, gossip, and so on. The real clincher was meeting Adi and Dejan at COEX (mentioned in an earlier blog) and then Dejan giving me his sweat-soaked shirt after a game. NOW THIS IS A FEELING! This season has been incredible. It helps that we're playing good football and being exciting, but the real link comes simply from the fact that, wherever I have lived in Korea, FC Seoul has been my 'local' team. It took time, but now I really feel a part of what they're doing. Perhaps as indicative, I have started to really dislike our traditional rivals, Suwon Bluewings. When they won the FA Cup on Sunday, I found myself cursing the competition as a backdoor to Champion's League football. I'm never ever going to get to the point where I hate the club (just as I don't hate Finn Harps or Liverpool), but I'll certainly always be clear about where my loyalties lie.

So, when I look at the world of football these days I see it from three distinct and varied perspectives. Whilst I might roll my eyes at Rooney's latest antics and grumble about the role of money and agents in the game, I know that that is part of the attraction. We love the Premiership precisely because the stakes are so high and if they weren't, stories like that simply wouldn't occur. Whereas the star striker at Man Utd is a millionaire with his private life sprawled across the world press, his equivalent at Derry City went to school with me. He lives down the road from my family home. He kissed my ex-girlfriend around the back of their school when they went to primary school together for crying out loud! Their counterpart at FC Seoul is a Montenegran international who has somehow wound up playing on the other side of the planet in a stadium and in front of capacities he could probably never have hoped to have achieved had he stayed playing in Europe, never mind being adored by some wee Irish teacher he, no doubt, can't even remember having met.

With Derry City on the verge of promotion back to the top-flight of Irish football, FC Seoul vying to win their first championship since 2000 and Man Utd recovering from a stuttering start to the season over-shadowed by off-field antics, each teams' fortunes will affect me in varying ways. I don't think I have to justify or prioritise my attachments. I'd never get to the point where I did something for any of the three that I would regret. No matter how many mindless quotes are repeated and celebrated, it is just a game. In saying that, it really is the beautiful game. I will enjoy the highs and suffer the lows, still reminding myself that under different circumstances, I might well have been cheering the opposition.