HELZBACH LOOKS FORWARD TO POST CHRISTMAS……

HELZBACH LOOKS FORWARD TO POST CHRISTMAS……

 

 

 

The time has come to start counting in hours (89) rather than ‘sleeps’. Excitement is mounting……there is expectation in the air. Will the man in red deliver?

Of course, I’m not talking about THAT man in red, I’m talking about 15 men, well possibly 21, all in a special shade of red they call Scarlet.

Yes, the time has come to once again turn our attentions to THE event of the year that happens just a day after the celebrations on the 25^th…it’s time to face the Ospreys again.

As a Scarlets supporter, every match brings that nervous tension. Who will be in the team? Will the boys perform on the day? Who’s referee and more importantly, how many of ‘their’ mistakes will he not see (should have gone to Specsavers!) and how many of the decisions that go against us will just baffle us Scarletonians into shocked disbelief in the stands, making us wonder if we’re watching a different game and causing our hands to automatically begin clapping in a slow, steady rhythm.

Whilst the whole of the rest of the world is busy with tinsel, presents and turkey, us Turks are also busy completing our own check list….

Scarlets jersey…check, Scarlets scarf and gloves….check, Scarlets hat….check, match ticket….check!

You see, this isn’t just any game…this is the one against the arch enemies…the team that begins with the letter ‘O’…..the local derby!

We’re not bothered about actually winning the ‘Evening Post’ Cup….we just want to come back over Loughor Bridge, safe in the knowledge that ‘West is Best!’
I’m sure you’ve seen the key rings they sell in the famous £1.20 shop (that’s inflation for you!) in Tenby…. ‘I support Wales and any team playing England’….well it’s the same for us Scarlets faithful….we don’t just want to beat the Ospreys…we HAVE to beat them!

The rest of the season will pale into insignificance for that period on Sunday afternoon when we will venture into foreign territory, and the Scarlet army will add a much needed splash of colour and song to the black of the enemy that is the Jack army.

For that period of time, hearts and voices will be behind every kick, every pass, every ruck. It’s hard work! But we do it for the boys…in fact, in seasons past; it’s felt like being a Scarlets supporter is THE hardest job in the world.

I’m sure actually being a player would be easier at times…..at least you could physically do something to try and sway the result!

Yes, we’ve all travelled miles, spent hours in the stands, in the freezing cold, beating rain, hoping and praying that the words of ‘Sospan Fach’ will inspire. We’ve sang until our voices have gone, shouted, cheered, jeered, even shed tears…all for our beloved team…..and we go back week after week and do it all over again, even if the journeys home the last couple of years have been long, silent ones.

However, that was the past, and this is the here and now. And as a Scarlets supporter, it’s looking good! Despite some hair-raising moments the last couple of months and disappointments…..we’re winning the games now!

We may not have a team full of big names, we may not have a bench full of internationals, but what we do have is a bunch of young Scarlets who are beginning to believe in each other, who are playing for themselves and the jersey and are becoming stars in their own rights, playing a brand of rugby that only we can.

It’s a good feeling now to be top of the Pool in the European Cup, second in the Magners League and top of the Pool in the LV= Cup.

But, come Sunday, after we’ve got Christmas Dinner out of the way for another year, there will only be one thing on all our minds….that all important win!

So, good luck to Nigel Davies and the boys on Sunday….let’s hope you give all us fans the one present that we’ve all asked Santa for…..a win over the Ospreys!!

Pob lwc bois…..YMLAEN SCARLETS!!!!