Run, Tony, Run — World Cup final, 2006
It's Women's World Cup final day here in Australia, and unfortunately, this time we watch from Melbourne. This is the story of the 2006 World Cup final in Germany, and my attempt to see it live.
This is the second last chapter of my book Australia United, Adventures at World Cup Germany 2006. (ebook). And an update to the opener. As of this month, I barrack for Ange and Tottenham.
I’m forever blowing bubbles,
Pretty bubbles in the air,
They fly so high,
Nearly reach the sky,
Then like my dreams
They fade and die.
As a kid, I chose to barrack for West Ham for three reasons. The first was the colours — I love that maroon. The second was the name. How good calling it after preserved pork? And the third was the song, more lullaby than sporting anthem:
I’m forever blowing bubbles,
Pretty bubbles in the air.
When shadows creep,
When I’m asleep …
Asleep? Asleep! With a jolt of panic, I jerked awake to realise that I wasn’t floating on a warm ethereal pillow to the gentle soundtrack of a Vera Lynn track. Instead, I was lying flat out on a dusty stretch of grass in the middle of Berlin, drooling mouth against daypack, and ‘I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles’ emanating tinnily from my mobile phone — the product of a £3.99 indulgence at the West Ham online shop.
‘Hello, Tony speaking’. There was grass in my mouth. I hoped it wasn’t Sam and Fee ringing for a preview of the final.
A male voice on the other end of the line said something that I couldn’t quite decipher. I was still half-asleep, and my mobile phone savvy didn’t extend to turning up the volume so I could hear calls in loud public places.
‘It’s Mat Annells … (muffle muffle) … in the next half hour …’
‘What?’ I shrieked, suddenly awake. Cam, Charlie and I had bumped into Mat on the streets of Berlin the night before. I’d asked him about the possibility of a ticket, and he’d delivered the bad news (fifteen hundred euro a ticket) with a footnote of hope — ‘Tone, when you know me, you’re never out of it.’
‘I’m sorry, I can’t hear!’ I screamed, running away from the Fan Mile towards the cover of bushes. I slid down like a commando.
‘I’ve called you twice already,’ the faint voice said. ‘Are you here at the stadium?’
‘No I’m in the Fan Mile.’
‘Can you be at the stadium in half an hour?’
My stomach did a back flip. Surely this wasn’t possible. ‘Have you got a ticket?’
‘I’ve got one ticket …Can you be at the stadium in thirty minutes?’
I had no idea how far the Olympiastadion was from the centre of Berlin. This wasn’t the moment for cold realism. ‘Of course I can get there in half an hour. How much do you want for it?’
‘If you can get here, you can have it for free.’
‘Free!’
Cam and Charlie were still asleep on the grass. I had to ask. ‘Have you got any others?’
‘Just one ticket’ the faint voice said. ‘I’ll text you where to meet.’
I started running and wriggling into my backpack even before Mat had finished his final sentence. I looked at my watch. It was twelve minutes past seven. The game kicked off in 48 minutes. I kicked Charlie and Cam awake as I rocketed past. ‘I might have a free ticket to the final!’ I screamed. ‘I’ve got to run!’
With less than an hour to go, it was so ridiculously improbable that they both started laughing. Cam cheered as I hurdled a bench-seat to get back into the sardine crush of the Fan Mile.
‘Go on you lucky bastard!’ he yelled after me. ‘Fly! Let us know whether you make it!’
I was moving too fast to even bother replying.
Run, Tony, run.
***
‘Nach dem Spiel
Ist vor dem Spiel’
‘After the game
Is before the game’
Sepp Herberger, opening credits, Run Lola Run
Give me some scarlet hair, cool lime-green jeans and feminine hips, and I’m Lola. The frenetic techno-charged 1998 German film, Run Lola Run begins with these words from Herberger, the late great German football coach, before cutting to Lola on a call from her desperate boyfriend, Manni. Lola’s mission: to raise 100,000 deutschmarks in 20 minutes to save Manni’s life. My mission: to travel 12 kilometres in 30 minutes to pick up the most coveted sports ticket on the planet.
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