England's on TV ....... yeah so what!

England’s on TV ……… So what

On Wednesday night I was sat on the sofa eating my dinner when my Mrs turned to me and said “shall I turn off Emmerdale, England footballs on”? Without even thinking I said “nah not bothered”.

As I drifted into a daze to avoid taking too much notice of Nicola King and her efforts to get Angel into private school, it struck me how uninterested I was in England being on the telly!

It’s really odd, I love my football and I am passionate about Spurs. If you are a Spurs fan then you will know the feeling of angst and excitement all wrapped up in one. You head every ball you make every tackle and your feelings on the day are dependent on the performance of your team.

As I look back to years go by I can remember a time when I felt the same way about the England team. As I sat there I tried to recall when these feelings changed. When did I stop caring? Because that’s where I am now. I honestly don’t care what the result is. Surely that’s not right? Is this just me?

Eventually Emmerdale finished and I did put the game on. I sat watching it and as Ireland scored I just shrugged. Oh well my disinterest was well placed. I didn’t stop watching the game I continued to watch until the end before heading off to work. To be honest I watch every game but for me now it is more out of a sense of loyalty rather than genuinely wanting to support the team. It’s almost like you have to watch rather than want to.

So when did my passion start to falter? I recall Italia 90 I was living in Bedford at the time and Bedford has a massive Italian population, the town was bussing all through the competition. When a live match was on the local Pizzeria did half price pizza’s it was great. It was the tournament of Gazza and the tears, well if that didn’t give you passion nothing would.

The next big tournament that sticks in my mind is Euro 96 here in England. Football’s coming home was playing nonstop on the radio and in shops and pubs all around. Once again Gazza was on fire the goal against the Jocks was sublime and unforgettable. The whole country was behind the team.

Ok so I was angry when the cheating Argies got Beckham sent off in 98, I felt sad when Kevin Keegan admitted he wasn’t good enough for the job. I was ecstatic when we smashed the Germans 5-1 in their own back yard, I even got a little excited when Beckham put that free kick in against Greece.

But to be fair that’s all it is, sparks of interest I have not had real passion for my countries national team at our national sport for nearly 20 years! It’s not that I have lost my passion for England. I get excited about the Ashes (even though I’m not a big cricket fan). Same with the 6 nations rugby and I was more interested than I expected over the Olympics. It’s just the football!

I am not alone either, it was spooky because just today I saw a tweet from someone saying the same as me, and they have no passion for England.

I looked at the enjoyment the Irish fans were having the other night and I’m jealous. I know some Dutch people and they are fanatical about their team dressed head to toe in Orange. Love them or hate them the Germans too seem to maintain enthusiastic support whenever they play.

I cannot say why I feel the way I do perhaps it is my frustration at the fact that the same players play each and every time whether they are playing well or not? Perhaps it is my annoyance that young players do not get brought through together to build for the future? Could it be that the England manager always seems to be the safe bet, boring with no visible desire? Could it be that the media hype lifts my hopes and then stamps all over them? Could it even be the lack of atmosphere which seems to be present and the ridiculously high ticket prices if you could even get one?

I don’t have the correct answer to why I feel this way; if I did maybe I could find the way to fix it. I want my passion back, but perhaps it’s down to the England set up to drag it out of me?