Cod Almighty | Postbag

We’re a talented lot, us Town fans: Cricketers, Poets and IFAB Blue Sky Thinkers

2 July 2024

Three cracking letters and I’m just sorry it’s taken me a while to get them published. At least the Town masses can enjoy them now!

June 7th article

Brian Brain.....oh boy do I remember him. As a student at Worcester college of education I played against a Worcestershire club and ground eleven. I faced three balls from him. The first two I never saw much to the mirth of Jim Standen (West Ham keeper) standing at silly mid on. The third blew away my stumps and my hopes of climbing up the cricketing ladder.
Thanks for reminding me of what was the most terrifying three minutes spent on a cricket field.

from Tom Allen

Letters Ed responds: You’re a braver man than me Tom and what a brilliant memory!

Jason Stockwood Interview

Hi CA Towers. Reading Tony Butcher's brill interview with Jason Stockwood got me a bit fired up and made me knock this little bit of prose out, with a bit of nostalgia thrown in, in appreciation of what Jason and Andrew Petit are doing all things GTFC:

Isn't it amazing what one person can do?
One season we are down - the next we're through From bobbing about with nothing to spare
Onto riding a wave from great despair.
A rudderless boat without an oar
To a play-off win, didn't we soar...
Alas all things do come to pass
From colliery fields to bio mass
To people that manage and lose their grip
The next one in to steady our ship...
To a fishing fleet so decimated
Windmills in the sea, congregated
Trying to keep one's identity
In the sea of change in indemnity...
So, the pride has returned to our football club
With ace ground improvements and edible grub
Yes it is amazing what one person can do
But how fortunate are we...we have two!

Regards and best wishes

Tony

from Tony Barker

Letters Ed responds: That’s just lovely thanks Tony and sums up our current position perfectly. I hope Jason and Andrew see it!

New way to witness the season :-)

I've had a thought after this season, and the 46 game permutations of Div Four, as well as the Premier League 38 game stretch. Every year we do it, how many games left, mathematically 'safe' and the rest. What about this for an idea?

Games are played, we all attend, enjoy the single game results, we can't not know how we have done. Here's the twist. It probably wouldn't work, but hear me out:

These are single game results we have attended. Forget the 'active league table'. We play everyone, but we send (and all the other teams do as well) our 'joker fixtures' in sealed envelopes to the league. The table isn't published, or if anyone wants to they can make their own. THEN, and only after the last games are played, does the league open the 'joker' games envelopes. These are club specific predictions by the club at the start of the season, of who they feel they will beat? Only then, using the double points for a correct prediction, and no points for an incorrect prediction, does the table get constructed. Maybe make 10 predictions for the season.

So you play your season out, you see your results, but the manager doesn't get sacked for a run of bad results, because you don't know where the table is, you don't build up relegation pressure in the same way, you don't fear the league leaders, because there won't be any. The promotion and relegation is then known an hour after the last game. Gotta be better than VAR, anyway :-)

I'll get me coat on the way out

TTFN

Ian Jackson

from Ian Jackson

Letters Ed responds: An interesting idea Ian but I’m not sure Town fans would go for it, we love the build up of angst. Maybe there will be other suggestions……..