Deconstructing the mythology of Millwall (a)

You've got your Stone Island on. You've watched Rise of the Foot Soldier Part II: Reign of the General. You've constructed confused ideas about the ontological beliefs of Karl Marx. You're ready for Millwall away. My one and only previous visit to the New Den had seen us pick up the epitome of a smash-and-grab …

Make mine a double

Watching your football team on a weekly basis is an experience that usually feels so tightly-bound with reality. Spending an hour and a half watching a similar collection of players on a bi-weekly basis means that you become accustomed to the things they do well, their limitations and their flaws, and the all too fleeting …

Snatching something from the jaws of nothingness

According to sports data scientists Twenty First Group, Swansea City currently have a 0% chance of achieving automatic promotion from the Championship this season, a 0% chance of making the play-offs, and also a 0% chance of being relegated to League One. For all of the talk of building for next season and using a …

Stepping in all directions

Watching Swansea City away from home has been a rather unpleasant experience in the opening weeks of 2022. It has been hard not to see performances and results on the road as significant steps in the wrong direction given how largely competent we have been at the Swansea.com since returning from the Covid-enforced mid-season break. …

Off-field incoherence creates on-field confusion

I went to sleep on Monday night thinking that, for once, Swansea City had managed to have the sort of low-key, relatively uneventful transfer deadline day that supporting a mid-table Championship club is all about. Despite much consternation online about the American owners' unwillingness to 'go for it' and give handsome Russell Martin the sort …

Death by passing

When poor, defenceless peoples born across the Roman Empire were forced to come face-to-face with all manor of man-eating beast during public events at amphitheatres from Carmarthen to Carthage, surely there was a point where the paying punter felt the event was a tad perfunctory. Surely there is only so much that can be expected …

How to win points and alienate opposition supporters

Being one goal up away from home in the closing minutes of any fixture is perversely one of the least enjoyable scenarios you can be in as a football supporter. The potential for giving up two precious points when the team you cherish is so close to sending you on the long journey home satiated …

The best type of hangover

How do you follow up the day of all days? Sunday's win against Cardiff had been a dream. A day that turned out better than anybody could have possibly hoped. The equivalent of when you go on a night out and somehow end up having a lovely old time without paying for a single drink, …

A Sunday afternoon swim

Everything about the build-up to a South Wales derby feels a bit unnatural. From forcing alcohol into your body at a time you should be eating breakfast to being herded onto a bus that will drop you off outside the way end two hours before kick-off for the away fixture, they are games that rarely …

Losing the right way (?)

Can you ever really be happy after watching the football team you cherish suffer a defeat? The fundamental purpose of every team at every level in every league across every country is to end the 90 minutes with victory. This can often lead to everything that happens in that hour and a half being written …