By St Marlowe
December 31 2005

Riding the Rollercoaster, Drinking the Bathwater Well here we are again at the start of a new season. All clocks set to zero, a host of new names signed up to be learned. Fixture list is out, drooling commences at the thought of a local derby on Sept 3rd.

Last season? Oh forget it – an annus horribilis, to be expunged from the memory, consigned to the darkest corners of the memory. Besides, with the new signings and the return to form of our old favourites there is no way we can struggle. In addition, we have the “mercurial” Carlos Spencer:

Faster than a speeding bullet.

More powerful than a locomotive.

Able to leap tall tiggers in a single bound.

Look! Up in the sky!

It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superlos!

 

Mercurial

Take your pick:

 

Mercurial - relating to or having characteristics (eloquence, shrewdness, swiftness, thievishness) attributed to the god Mercury; "more than Mercurial thievishness"

 

mercurial - liable to sudden unpredictable change; "erratic behaviour"; "fickle weather"; "mercurial twists of temperament"; "a quicksilver character, cool and wilful at one moment, utterly fragile the next"

 

 

So, orft we jolly well go. At the end of last season, we were predicting at best a bottom 3 finish, then over the summer,  as confidence grew, (and memory faded) the predictions became bolder, and now it is a top five finish. In two weeks time it’ll be top three. And some of these other new signings – fantastic, strength in depth at last. (Till the injuries start and the national teams come calling.) The club goes from strength to strength. So many season tickets this year, that singleton tickets for when your Uncle Jim comes to visit are going to be rarer than a round from Robson. But that’s the price we pay for being one of the most successful clubs in the most succesful league in the world. (As evidenced by the fact that we’re still in it after last year!)

 

I guarantee the following.

By Christmas,

2 major signings will be on the long term injury list.

My fingernails will be down to the quick.

The new Powergen will be dismissed as a distraction, because we’re out.

LOM will be Mrs Hazell-O’Mahoney

Rugby Club will lose interest in our Mercurial Signings

 

And life will go on very much as before. We will get used to being mid-table, but know that we are in reality a top three club. We’ve all drunk the bathwater*, we’ve all psyched ourseves up, nerves will be at a fever pitch. So why do we do it?

 

 

 

BECAUSE SAINTS IS THE GREATEST CLUB IN THE WORLD, AND WE ARE ALL STARK, STARING BONKERS!!

 

 

David (St Marlowe)

 

** To “drink the bathwater” – Slavishly believe our own hype