The Caerphilly Messi: or the fall and rise of Aaron Ramsey

Posted on by Blacksheep

By Blacksheep63

Aaron Ramsey was born on Boxing Day, which is of significance if only because it sits just after the important day of Christmas and has come to be seen as something of a poor bedfellow of the major Christian feast day. Children born around Christmas also have to accept that, unlike most of us, they are unlikely to be the sole centre of attention on their birthday.

Ramsey plays in an Arsenal team which has boasted some of the most skilful and dynamic midfielders of the last decade. I give you Fabregas, Cazorla, Diaby, Wilshere, Arteta, Nasri and now Mesut Özil.

Too often Aaron has been characterised as the water carrier in this set up and even more often he has had to ply his trade away from his favoured position. So we’ve seen him on the wing and at full back instead of at the centre of things, directing play and making those box-to-box runs that have now become a familiar part of his game.

Arsenal bought Ramsey from Cardiff City in 2008, paying a touch under £5m for him. In doing so they fought off competition from Manchester United and Everton.

And pause there for a moment. £4.8 million. Ramsey’s fellow Welsh international Gareth Bale has just signed for Real Madrid for somewhere close to £90m…

He made his competitive début in 2008 (against FC Twente in the CL qualifiers) he scored his first goal against Fenerbache later that campaign. He came to the attention of FIFA who picked him out as a future star. In 2009 he was named Welsh Young Player of the Year and Wenger compared him to Roy Keane.

Then the incident occurred which has almost served to define his Arsenal career until this season. On February 27 Arsenal travelled to Stoke City for a PL game. Stoke took the lead before Bendtner (who he?) equalised. A tight game developed with Stoke at their combative best (or worst) but with Arsenal pushing for the victory.

Then Ryan Shawcross ‘took a heavy touch and caught Ramsey just above the ankle’ (BBC report) as he was stretching to reach the ball. The injury was horrific; I remember listening to the game and the commentators were sickened by what they saw. As were the Arsenal players closest to the incident. They went on to win the game 3-1 but Ramsey’s ankle was in bits.

Arsene Wenger was outraged by the tackle: “I am just shocked because that is not football for me. It is not what I like in the game.” While the Stoke manager, Tony Pulis, backed his player. He’s ‘not that kind of player’ said nearly every pundit, it’s part of the game, it was an accident.

Aaron was out of football from February to November before returning in a reserve match. He then went out on loan (to Derby, then Nottingham Forest and then back to Cardiff). It seemed his Arsenal career was on hold, should he have chosen United after all? Then in May 2011 he scored and was named MOTM in a home win over United at the Emirates – Ramsey was back.

Last season he played 47 times for the club, signed a new contract (as part of the ‘British spine’), made five assists and scored two goals. This season he has played seven times and scored six goals. He is the man in form and has several MOTM performances to his name.

Ok, so why the article?

I sit (well mostly stand actually) in the north bank lower stand and while I’m no tactician (unlike so many around me it appears…) I see a guy who consistently plays his heart out and gives everything for his teammates and the club.

Sometimes he can be guilty of trying too hard, of complicating things when a simple pass is easier, of trying to entertain. There have been occasions when he has been asked to play well out of position and just gets on with it. He doesn’t grumble, he doesn’t badmouth the club; he gets on with it, a model professional.

And yet despite coming back from what could have been a career ending injury, despite the fact that Stoke fans boo him (for exposing Shawcross for the thug he is); despite being loaned out around a lower division and still wanting to play for us; despite his stellar performances at the end of last season (which helped push us to that all important 4th spot); and his match winning form this season – despite all that, I hear the moaners all around me.

And more important (to me at least) is that I don’t hear the home crowd singing his name.

Jack Wilshere, whom I love to bits, is rarely criticised; Santi, who has not been up to his high standards so far this season, gets his name chanted continuously; and this weekend it will all (understandably) be about our latest Germanic purchase. Why is Aaron so despised or neglected?

Is it as simple as his nationality? Is it because Aaron Ramsey is Welsh? English prejudice against the Welsh is nothing new – we’ve been at it for centuries. The Celtic fringes resisted the incursion of the Saxon hoards in the centuries after the Romans left our shores. Edward I battered the Welsh into submission at the same time he subdued the Scots.

And of course Wales isn’t even a proper country, it’s a principality. Full of sheep. And people that sing. And eat coal. These are English prejudices. In Chester (not far from the Welsh border) it is still legal to shoot a Welsh person with a bow and arrow inside city walls after midnight. The Saxon king Offa dug a ditch – a dyke – to keep the Welsh out.

Aaron is Welsh, he captained his country at an early age, and he is a proud Welshman and a Cardiff fan at heart. I wonder what he makes of Arsenal fans singing ‘sheepshaggers’ at the visiting Swansea supporters? How will he feel when some idiots do the same when the Bluebirds (redbirds now) visit?

Personally I think this sort of low level nationalism stinks; it disgraces the club and it denigrates the memory of the hundreds of thousands of Welshmen that have served Great Britain over the centuries.  Shakespeare knew this – his character of Llewellyn in Henry V is both a figure of fun AND an example of bravery and loyalty under fire.

Aaron Ramsey is a loyal, brave and skilful footballer. Furthermore he is an Arsenal player. He deserves a lot better from us, from the Emirates crowds, than he is getting at the moment. I say there’s only one Aaron Ramsey, one Aaron Ramsey.

Blacksheep63 (and no, in case you were wondering, I’m not Welsh)

Anniversary of the day:

  • 20 September 2002:  Wenger announces “Arsenal can go unbeaten all season” to huge derision from media.  (Article contains the chronology of the era)

The books…

A few of the other sites from the same team…

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50 Replies to “The Caerphilly Messi: or the fall and rise of Aaron Ramsey”

  1. Blacksheep.
    Ramsey is now loved by the fans and at the away games his name has been the most sung along with giroud and santi . But you still have the D&G (doom and gloomers ). At the ems . There a bit thick and it will take some time for them to work out he has been our best player from the back end of last year up to today . As for the sheep shaggers being half welsh I quite like it . ( the saying not the act) I think you will find most welsh people take it in good spirit as the many blow up sheeps you will see at a Wales rugby match it would be good to have other welsh people’s view on this

  2. An article about Ramsey. I love it. I love him. I like it (the article)

    Thanks for explaining the Welsh part. I didn’t know it was like that but then again I’m not English and never visited Wales and hardly know anything about the region or county or principality.

    As I have written with much love in the past about Ramsey even when he had a hard time I feel sooooo happy that he finally delivered all that promise that he had inside him and that was nearly smashed to pieces by that c*nt I shall not name.

    I have been one of his defenders all those years. As I have been the victim of a similar accident when I had his age. I was 19 (like in the song) when my leg was smashed to shit on the football field. So was Aaron.

    I have felt his pain. I even cried in silence when it happened (as with Eduardo). And for myself there was no way back. But I hoped and prayed that there would be a way back for Aaron (and for Eduardo). But as Eduardo had shown it needs a very strong person to overcome such a thing. Eduardo was less strong to stay in a league that gave him no protection at all.

    Ramsey was stronger and fought his long and lonely battle. The only support he got was from the club. And from Wenger. He kept on believing in Ramsey. And as usual he was right again.

    My hope for Sunday is that Ramsey continues his fine form. and I think he now should get a hattrick in one of the next games. Why not on Sunday? Wouldn’t that be the final step of showing the world that the thug tried to get him but that he, Aaron Ramsey was too strong for him and outshines him on the pitch. How sweet that would be….

    FFS let us sing his name out loud as Blacksheep said to do. He deserves it more than any other player for the moment.

  3. Decent article until we get to the Welsh bit. Silly! I must admit that I was one of his doubters, but my admiration for him now is huge having witnessed his battle and victory over his adversities. Good luck Aaron against those Stoke Orcs on Sunday; nutmeg Shawcross and stick it in the onion bag.

  4. I think you seriously overplay the level of animosity directed by English people towards the Welsh & don’t see it as a factor in the crowd’s attitude towards Aaron.
    (I’d argue that the English have a tendency to make fun of Scots/Welsh/Irish & certainly to be condescending but if there is any genuine hatred these days it only flows in the other direction, & that from a hardline minority alone larger in Scotland than Wales).
    The ‘sheepshagger’ thing is urban vs rural taunt not a nationalist one. Londoners or Mancuniansare just as likely to direct it at West Country folk, East anglians or Northumbrians as they are Welsh.

    But the main point about the crowd not chanting his name is a good one to make. Personally I think he has just been a scapegoat, with his profligate play of a year ago just one symptom of the 8 years neglect that made fans so very frustrated. If he continues to improve & exhibits the consistency we have seen in the last few months (plus the team as a whole performs well) the songs will come.

  6. @the Font, thanks for that – very glad to hear it too – the singing part not the sheep shagging 🙂 !

    I don’t wish to sanitize football but when you use culturally specific insults then that is racism, just like the use of the N word or the Y word (as has been discussed before). It’s quite mild in this instance but it unveils a prejudice nonetheless.

    @Walter, I feel your pain too ouch 🙁

  7. @Sceptical
    yes you may be right, I’m searching for explanations really not saying is it this or that or something else. But condescension is still a sign of England’s imperialist attitude towards its neighbours. The urban/rural point is well made, and demonstrates another prejudice born of ignorance and the arrogance of the urbanite. Which I am far too often guilty of myself! 🙂

    @AFC52 thanks and yes, as Tony says, being silly – or indeed provocative to start a debate – is all well and good

  8. We here in Aus like to tease the Kiwis of shaging sheep, but only cos they do 🙂 despite we have more sheep and kangaroos per head.
    Anyway when Ramsey got his leg broke by an Orc I remember the fans sang his name loudly for ages and used him as a beacon for our hurt all round with refs and the kicks we were getting. I even remember big banners at the game of him and his number. This is why I was so surprised that the fans turned on him but maybe it was just keyboard warriors doing the hating?
    I don’t know I can’t go to the games so just don’t know.
    I love him the most in our squad though he deserves any and all glory that may come his way….
    COYG!

  9. Blacksheep
    In life racism is not acceptable in any form. But banter in football can sometimes be misconstrued
    Bin dipper yes sheep shagger yes stick your Spanish onions up your a*se yes
    But in my opinion the Y word the spuds use is totally unacceptable and offensive so I am totally amazed at what has been said this week . By certain dignitaries being we have many Jewish fans I find it intolerable we continue to sing anti Semitic songs and this needs to be addressed by the club

  10. Ramsey is magnificent. The only problem I have with him is that he is a reminder of the morons in our fan base, morons who I wish were nothing to do with this club. When the biggest fish come calling for Rambo, as I am sure they will this summer, just hope he remembers the manager, coaching staff, players, fans like the many on here and increasingly elsewhere that love him

  11. I don’t post comments often, but I must agree with your well constructed article.

    Many of my friends and fellow Gooners have been shall we say less than positive about Ramsey. My attitude has always been give the guy a chance; he is young and has had to recover from a shocking injury, we should be supporting him not slagging him off. I always believed he would come good and I am pleased to say I was correct. If you recall it was Fabregas who sang the Welshman’s praises originally.

    I totally agree that we should sing his name and The Font is right, he his loudly supported at away games but it is the home games that are the problem.

    As for the Welsh thing; well I am a Jones and consider myself as much English as Welsh (I was born in England and my Grandfather was Welsh) and don’t find banter like sheepshaggers an issue and I am sure Ramsey doesn’t. If one gets offended by things like that football is not the place to ply your trade.

    Let’s make sure we sing Ramsey’s name on Sunday and Boo like F**k when Shawcross is hoofing the ball (well he sure won’t be passing it).

  12. Good article, and a good player who is underrated by many. He’s been unfairly treated by our own fans given what he’s gone through. Few people recover from such horrific injuries(Eduardo was never the same player) and for him to have come back in that way is nothing short of a miracle. That utd wanted him so bad shows what a special talent he is.

    I think the only gripe, if I may call it that, I have had with him is like you pointed out(and you hit the nail on the head there) he has tried to entertain and didn’t pull the move off at a cost to the team. I know he has had the misfortune(or luck) of playing with supremely gifted footballers around him, and I have felt due to that he has occasionally attempted to make some unnecessary flick or audacious or stylish move which he couldn’t pull off leading to him losing possession. I think if he can cut that bit out and keep it simple, he will become one of the best British mid fielders of all time(he’s not far off; and the scary bit is he’s only 22 and captained his country already!).

  13. Blacksheep – it wasn’t really provocative just unnecessary, and for me it spoilt a decent article. As far as I’m concerned although we may have differing opinions, re our club, we are all Gooners together whether we come from Holloway (where I was born)or from Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch or even from Timbuktu.
    And don’t forget that Jack Kelsey was an absolute legend at The Arsenal.

  14. I love Ramsey. I love any player that puts in that level of effort. But I’m worried about him. It’s simply not possible to put that effort in for a whole season. We really need to get some players back fit for rotation. Hopefully we will have the game won early this weekend and he can come off early and have a rest.

    Can’t wait for him to show Shawcross and his gang how real men play football though. Another Ramsey brace would do nicely.

  15. Forgive me my ignorance Brad Jones but when you say ‘I am a Jones’ does this mean that ‘Jones’ is seen or is more a Welsh name than an English name?
    By the way you said it I got the impression that the name Jones might refer to Welsh roots and if that is the case I was never aware of this to be honest.

    And if I misunderstood it, sorry but I do admit I’m not completely in the know about possible differences between English and Welsh people.

    I do know from Tony they have a different language…

  16. Blacksheep 63,
    Your post needed to be said. Whether those morons who frequent the Emirates will take notice is doubtful. You see, they have to have a scapegoat or two on whom to vent their bile when things don’t go exactly to plan.
    Ramsey is a natural successor to Denilson and Walcott in the list of loyal Arsenal players subjected to disgraceful abuse over the years.

  17. Al,
    I remember him at the start of his Arsenal career upsetting Wenger on a few occasions. Making a backpass in a Carling cup game that was almost too short spring to mind and remember Wenger shouting at him at the time (rather unusual sight) as it was a close game.

    He sometimes overplays it but that is what most players do as they know they can play a bit. But he now is so strong it rarely happens that he loses the ball from it. But he can become over confident and that happened in the Marseill game at the end. When Flamini came off it was Aaron who sat deep and he gave the ball away that got Marseille the penalty. A momentary lack of concentration I think or being too tired?

    However at the end of the game he was taken in the picture a few times and I think you could see some very mixed emotions on his face. Obviously big joy for the win, but I also noticed an angry look on his face. And I think he was very angry on himself for having caused the penalty. Be it a correct ref decision or not he gave the ball away when he shouldn’t have done it. And you could see that he wasn’t satisfied completely.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if Wenger said a word about it after the game. I hope he has. Because I think that is what makes Ramsey so good and has improved him: telling him what he did wrong and showing him what he has done good. That is the way forward and looking at the comments from the manager and his teammates that is what he has been doing the last year

  18. Why so ashamed of the English superiority complex Blacksheep?

    If you translate countries into teams then England = Arsenal & Scotland = Tottenham.

    For land mass read stadium & bank balance.
    For population size read supporter base.
    For military battles through history read trophies.
    For cities read players. London = Özil, Glasgow = Adebayor.
    Much as Scotland has a temporary economic boost from North Sea Oil it will run out one day & the money will be wasted. See Gareth Bale.

    I’m sure you have no problem being condescending towards Spurs as it is justified. So why begrudge the English a similar privilege?

    (I know I’ve used Scotland but I don’t know enough about Brentford to carry the analogy with Wales)

  19. For the record the above is done for humour, I’m English born but of Irish descent.

    I don’t want to be seen as some form of Daily Mail reading EDL nutter!

  21. Walter
    I agree that sometimes being good can lead to these kinds of things happening. Its all part of being confident, but he doesn’t do it a lot these days, like you rightly point out. Maybe the slight disappointment after the Marseille game(even though the ref was more to blame for that one) will fire him up even more. I don’t think it’ll affect his confidence and have no doubt in my mind he’s the sort of player who will only come back stronger from such a minor blip, he’s shown already what a strong character he is.

  22. I have a basic rule when it comes to Arsenal players: NEVER slag them off. Yes, I agree that it is dogmatic but that is one of my own ways of supporting the team. Especially as I believe in the abilities of the man in charge. Am I always happy with our players? Absolutely not; I even have grudges against Arsene Wenger sometimes.

    What I would not do though, is go to the stadium to boo anyone associated with Arsenal or go online to post negative comments about my club. It’s ok to say that a particular player is off form or had a bad game. Every working person knows that not all days at work go according to plan or routine, so why should we expect anything different of the players at their place of work?

    I have no need for any mea culpa on Ramsey. Yes, I wasn’t oblivious when he was trying too hard and blasting the ball into the stands when a little less force would have produced better results. I can say the same about Gervinho, Eboue, Arshavin, Denilson etc (although they were all frustrating for different reasons). If Arsene Wenger, whom I have utter respect for as a manager and a human being, chooses to play anyone, I will be patient with them even if I don’t personally approve. Who the hell am I anyway?

    We have the new phenomenon of the know-it-all fans due to the influence of the Internet and the fact that anyone can become an expert on any issue under the cover of Internet anonymity. You can also get to write whatever you want and make up whatever background stories you want to enhance your profile and credibility. That is why the Net is filled with opinions of arrogant ignoramuses.

    Fans of football clubs are now being goaded by the media to attack their own teams. Spurred on by quest for fame and short term glory, they harrass their management and players at the slightest of blip. Some bloggers have made names for themselves just for formenting discontent against players. Not many throw the name of Desi Gunner around but Le Grove is well known. Those who have read the 2 blogs know what I’m talking about.

    I don’t think that anyone should be patting themselves on the back for changing their minds on Aaron Ramsey and how they used to react to him. Are they going to start having mea culpa about Walcott now that he has scored? I think those who used to slag off our players should be resolving that they will always be patient in future with any Arsenal player having a difficult time or under-performing. We are not supposed to be supporters in good times; we are supposed to be supporters especially at difficult times.

  24. Congrats, Blacksheep63, on an interesting Post.

    Ramsey is at last able to show what a fantastic ‘engine’ he has and the fact he makes occasional errors, like the lack of control before giving away the penalty against Marseille, is partly because he makes more passes and has more ball possession, covering more blades of grass on the pitch than anyone else.

    I notice that he looks like he has ‘lead’ boots when passing sometimes, so that if he is slightly ‘off’ in direction the ball has zipped past before his team mate can react. That is why I would like to see him shoot at goal more often, while keeping the ball down, because he will either score or get valuable rebounds from the keeper.

  25. Nice article.

    Regarding Ramsey…. I really don’t know why people got on his back. Not a star name? Doesn’t play in one of the flair/eye catching roles?

    To be fair not everybody got on his back and there is far too much creedance played to the opinion of bloggers (and the comments in blogs) – as much as I enjoy reading a couple of blogs.

    For anybody that watches a game and sees what players are trying to do as well as what the actually do you could see that Ramsey had potential. He is now realising that potential and I’m very pleased for him as I stuck up for him at the time. It also shows Arsene Wenger in a good light and he should take a lot of credit for his handling of Ramsey.

    The way Ramsey is playing at the moment reminds me of Bryan Robson and he was a hell of a player!

  26. Agree with AFC, a very good article until the bit about the Welsh. Most English people really don’t give them a second thought. No difference between calling the Welsh names and any other grouping. Chelsea are commonly known as the Chavs. We always used to sing about Liverpool slums and call people Northern Bastards. I think the author might need a bit of manning up. We have enough delicate flowers at home games as it is…….

  27. here’s a small chant for the lovely lad.
    “Aaron’s our man cause we knew he will be world class! we call him Rambo as we’d knew he’d last!. had his ankle broken by shan that twat, as he was cross because he knows he’s a twat. Now Aaron is back now he is world class, he’s show that by booting u motherf***ers up ur arse.

  28. What I really liked after the game in France,was the expression on Rambos face. It was an expression of anger for what he had done, his regret. I thought that is the last time we will him make these sort of errors. What an unbelievable game he had.

  30. Well done black sheep.

    Tis a pity fans chased Gerv out of the club for similar alleged crimes as Rambo.
    I read one fan saying ‘but I’ve always loved Ramsey, I’ve been supporting him since March don’t ya know?’

  31. In Aaron it was clear from the start that Arsene had brought to Arsenal not just another ‘prospect’ but a special young man. Then he got that ‘kick’.
    It could so easily have been the end of his career. We watched him begin again in the first team. Those who like to ‘attack’ all matters Arsenal had the knives out for him.

    To those of us who wanted Aaron to succeed it was painful to watch, it must have been devastating for Aaron. However his determination and the coaching staff’s belief in him I believe have brought him the success has enjoyed recently.

    I felt for Aaron on Wednesday. When I saw that ‘look’ on his face we saw how much he wants the best for Arsenal and for himself.

    I hope that on Sunday we see has moved on from that ‘moment’ and it has not knocked his confidence.

  33. Yes Walter, I used to have that sort of face when I made silly mistakes at the back in my playing days. They were never repeated. As mentioned above AW would have a word with him.

  34. The English Media can definitely be biased against Wales. When the Briitsh Lions put out a team including 10 Welshmen, the Telegraph ran a piece saying this was not a real British team, etc etc.

    Whenever Wales wins the 6 nations, does it get headline coverage in the papers. Er, no.
    When England win anything, it is splattered far and wide of course.

    Arsenal historically are a Scottish football team.

    That being said, I don’t see any particular lack of respect for Ramsey and Bale at the moment.

  35. Oops, sorry.
    I’ve just seen, colario, that you’ve picked up my post from the “cheating” thread.

    Walter
    You’ve sung Ramsey’s praises and defended him BIG time, for ever, seemingly. Thanks for doing so again, and for defending all of Arsenal’s players.

  36. rantetta
    Yes thank you and I have read it.

    Its frightening, if the suspicions prove to be true then football in England as a ‘sport’ is finished.

    On the subject this blog. Arsene has said that he made a mistake with Bale because he decided not to go for him.

    However he deserves the congratulations of every Arsenal supporter for bringing Aaron to Arsenal.

  37. Gouresh, what exact mistake are you referring to?
    Surely not the penalty.
    The look of anger on his face might have been reserved for the referee.

    Yes, Aaron has done many, and will continue to make errors in his game. He is not Dennis Bergkamp after all.

    It’s about time his name was sung loudly at the Ems.

  38. Rantetta,
    I could say it is my ‘job’ but one I love to do so much to be honest. But it is not a job, it is because I love every Arsenal player and will defend them as long as they pull on the shirt. I could have had egg on my face now defending Ramsey. But I just felt that he was special before his injury.
    I will never forget the words Cesc Fabregas said when Ramsey came peeping around the first team: “Ramsey is much better than I was at the same age and I have to do my best to keep ahead of him”.

    Now if a player like Cesc is saying such a thing from what he has seen on the training ground then you can be sure that he has that something extra. So in a way it was easy to stand up for Ramsey as people who knew about it had told me he how good he was.

  39. @Tony
    Tony Attwood
    September 20, 2013 at 9:05 am

    AFC52. There’s nothing wrong with being silly.
    Says a gooner who is also a goons fan!

  40. We just have to imagine if we would see Ramsey playing like he does for MU, MC or Chelsea. What would we say? We would say: damned why did Wenger miss out on him.
    Maybe we could buy him from them? For how much you think? 25M? 30M?
    I don’t think any of those teams would sell him to us now…

  41. @ Unbelievable belief
    It was school boy error for what he did and he knew it hence his anger. Weather it was or not a penalty is a different matter but trying to play across your 6 yr box is not very clever. We learn from mistakes and we won’t hold him for that. If he had pulled it off, it would be termed as world class. He’s still got a long way and we will all be sitting by the way side as be passes through. Looks like its going to be a great ride.
    as for the song, why not start with the chant i have mentioned above?

  42. Walter
    I remember those comments from Cesc, and I remember seeing him on video when he said them (about Ramsey). Cesc wasn’t joking.

    colario
    I don’t really want to fully believe what was said in that article about the U-21 match, but that’s because it’s too frightening to think about the possibility of young players being bought! I haven’t looked at the video yet. I might not. Perhaps I’ll stay in denial on this one, at least until after the game against Stoke/bet365. Urgh!

    Walter
    You’re a true supporter. You’ll definitely go to Gooner heaven.

  43. I can’t help wondering how Ozil feels around Arsenal’s players. We’re talking about a group of young, humble intelligent men, marshalled by the great Arsene Wenger.

    Years ago (and perhaps it’s the same at some clubs even now), inductions included nasty or embarrassing things to be done. (I can’t remember where I read that but maybe it was from a player’s autobiography).

    At Arsenal new players sing a song. I have the impression (without actually knowing), that these are beautiful gatherings, where the newby is really, genuinely welcomed to the club. The love is really shown.

    Ooh to be a Gooner.

  44. I have a feeling Gooner Heaven will be a bit like beating Barca 5-2 in the Champions League final, in Lisbon.
    Goals from Theo-Jack-Ramsey-Gibbs-Ramsey.

    For the third year in a row.
    COYGs!.

  47. From the British isles – Things to know

    In the 1400’s a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb.
    Hence we have ‘the rule of thumb’

    ————

    Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented.
    It was ruled ‘Gentlemen Only…Ladies Forbidden’.. …
    and thus, the word GOLF entered into the English language.

    In Shakespeare’s time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes.
    When you pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened,
    making the bed firmer to sleep on.
    Hence the phrase…’Goodnight , sleep tight’

    ————

    In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts….
    So in old England , when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them ‘Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down. It’s where we get the phrase:
    ‘mind your P’s and Q’s’

  48. Many, not just Arsenal fans should celebrate and support Ramsey. He play excellent football but we can find dozens of players like that. The thing is, he climbed back from terribly injury and works hard on the pitch. Also he never fear away from challenges or making challenges.

    You need a lot of skills, guts and confidence to do that!!!

  49. Walter,

    Sorry for the delay in responding but yes Jones is a very Welsh name and certainly not English.

    My family on my father’s side has the Welsh heritage, but many English people are a mixture of English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish in one way or another.

    Best,

    B

  50. Thanks for taking the time to still answer Brad.

    I must say that I really didn’t know that about the Jones name being Welsh.

    Ah, Untold the most interesting blog 😉 and also the blog where you can actually learn something. Even in the comment section.

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