Football: Pure Poetry is packed with poems from fans across the UK. The book starts in pre-season and follows a day in football, from waking up, travelling, going to the pub, match, half-time and leaving early, to the journey home and dreaming of football at night.

Some are very funny, others very clever, while some are absolutely nonsensical. The Cardiff City Blues is a particularly good effort, as is Seven-nil, the tale of a win for WBA over Barnsley which ends with the marvellous line ...... "she silently reflected how unattractive a man dancing naked around the bedroom can really be".

While the book does contain this and other gems - my personal favourite being .... "I decided I must bite the bullet and buy blue pyjamas and a small Ruud Gullit" - it's really for diehard fans of both football and poetry only.

Football: Pure Poetry, edited by Ted Smith-Orr, is available at Bromley bookstores and the Charlton Athletic Superstore, priced £5.99.

Lorraine Homer