It might not be the first

place, this town in Worcestershire,

that you deliberate over with

ponderous ambition

but perhaps Kidderminster

should have a thought, a moment

of attention, as the rising steam

and black grumpy cloud

muddle together with the song

of yesterday, vapour

on the wing as the Harriers take the game

by the scruff of the neck

and equalise, last minute or so,

saluted by days gone by

as supporters walk

with drawn point faces

through the haze of nostalgia

and the mist of hope

for the season to come.

(Kidderminster Harriers 3-3 Ashton United: August 2018)

Ian D. Hall 2018