10 May 2007(Thu)

May 8, 2007: These are grim times for FC Tokyo fans, as the team stumbles from one calamity to the next.

Well, maybe a couple of beers and some fish and chips might cheer you up!

The countdown clock is ticking to Saturday, May 12, at 7pm to be precise, when Tokyo entertain JEF United at Ajinomoto Stadium.

With full credit to the people behind the scenes at FC Tokyo, they are making the occasion "UK Day" and hope to attract the many Brits who live in the Tokyo area to the game.

There will be a special discount price for Brits attending the match, and fans will be able to buy the traditional fare of fish and chips, washed down with an English pale ale. The British Embassy are also involved, so hopefully there will be a festival atmosphere before the game.

The UK Day theme is a natural progression for FC Tokyo, whose home matches try to capture the feel of a game in England in several aspects.

The first thing that comes to mind is the pre-match rendition of the Liverpool anthem "You'll never walk alone", plus the English stadium announcements by resident Brit Steve Spencer, who hails from Blackpool (to use the parlance of the typical player pen picture in the match day programme back home).

And Steve really loves his music, too, as all Brits do. "That's Entertainment" by The Jam and the Oasis classic "Don't Look Back in Anger" are part of the staple diet at Ajista, and the Brits who take advantage of this special offer on Saturday night might be feeling a little homesick listening to this as they devour their fish and chips (hopefully served in old newspapers, covered in salt and leaking with vinegar) and enjoy a pint or two (or three).

On the subject of football stadium food in England, I would like to relate a very funny story from a Wimbledon-Newcastle United match at Plough Lane, London, in the late 1980s.

About an hour before kick-off, myself and half a dozen other football writers from the north-east down there to cover Newcastle were milling around the centre circle, enjoying a juicy hamburger.

I was just about to take a large bite out of my mouth-watering snack when a hand reached over my shoulder and grabbed the burger. I turned round to see who it was, but was not quick enough to prevent a young and playful Paul Gascoigne from stuffing the whole burger into his mouth in one, chewing quickly and swallowing -- and this was an hour before kick-off!

This match would become famous, or, rather, infamous, for the physical abuse suffered by Gazza at the hands of Wimbledon hooligan Vinnie Jones -- but that is another, long, long story!

Enjoy your fish and chips at Ajista!

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