Stoke Away (FA Cup)

Greetings.

Well we all know of the unceremonious exit of the Arsenal from the FACup this weekend by the hands of a very capable Stoke. I can't be ashamed of the loss because it was a hard fought battle of which the scoreline belies.

The pub, however, was full of some interesting happenings this weekend.

Saturday

I entered the pub around 8 or so to be greeted by the smiling Reading fan. There were quite a few of the Chelsea lads in attendance as well. There was a good footballing vibe going on. I took my seat next to Reading and we started discussing the finer points of the match.

ChelskiGirl was stuck in her bed, being lazy. I called her and informed all the lads of such. There were many volunteers who wished to join her but she left her cocoon and joined the rest of us shortly by the half.

Reading and I decided that we were only cheering on underdogs for the rest of the day. We were transfixed to the Accrington Stanley - Fulham match, just because it was more interesting than the Everton - Birmingham tie that was also being shown.

My original plan was to take my leave prior to the end of the match but Leeds was taking on Scum. They had already eliminated MancScum so let's see if they could do the proper Scum.

The pub was still full, much fuller than it had been in the most recent weekends. I was half done with what seemed to be bottomless pints of New Castle, as was Reading. Sheffield and WestBrom pop by and it just continued.

The four of us caught up and chatted, killing time before the Haiti fundraiser. I am still trying to remember if that was even a good idea. All I can say, is some money left my pocket and ended up in the hands of some Scousers.

The event was not at the pub so we did enter some foreign territory. And as followers of the English game, we did what we knew best... found a dart board. The setup was close to the kitchen so the food runners had to keep cutting through. Which at first wasn't that bad but as the night creeped on.

BC/BC bounced up the stairs in the middle of our darts game and I think we all tried to explain it to her but it wasn't working. They also had a Wii, which someone had the brilliant idea of quickly finishing darts and starting Wii-Bowling.

I sat out of that, as I am not biggest fan of bowling to begin with. I believe WestBrom came from behind and beat everyone. It was an enjoyable time. However, like all good things, it had to come to an end.

A Certain Scouser would not believe I was fine. I kept telling her I was just tired, so on the way home I ended up with about 10 text. It would have probably been smarter not to answer all of them but I did.

Safe and sound I found my bed, after about a 12 hour bender, where I believe I ended up more sober by the time I made it home than I started out the day.

SUNDAY

It was to be a short morning, whether or not the result of the match should be considered. My band had to move it's practice space and time, which Sunday afternoon was the final result.

It mattered much not anyway. The Arsenal crew was cynical from the drop of the ball. I think we all had a sneaking suspicion of what type of day it was going to be after the first goal. I have to admit, we are quite a hilarious group even in the midst of a loss. It's been quite some time since we've even sneezed on a trophy, I suppose.

There was a positive side to this all. LittleWill was on his last day before heading back to school. He's a pretty funny kid. We spent a good half hour teasing LittleSister before I had to take my leave.

I guess in summation it was not a bad weekend but not quite a good one. A win would have been nice but now The Arsenal boys can concentrate on the league, which is much more important in my opinion.

The other thing that made the weekend much more pleasurable was being able to spend it with the good folks I have grown to be as close to as members of a large family. There is something unique and special about this football crowd. It may seem insular and strange to an outsider but some of the most generous and open people that I have ever come to know stand beside me on a weekend morning at 8 am swearing at a referee 2000 miles away.

I would not care to be with anyone else but my extended crew.

~LeChat