Since the tragic passing of our Ben Hiscox, I have found myself joining a group of ‘Grumpy Old Villagers’ who are following Stoke Gifford’s every game. I usually watch at least one version of the Gifford, usually depending on which one my son happens to be playing for. But lately, it’s been the first team.
Today, I made the short journey to Tytherington Rocks, past the sadly closed Swan Inn, to see the boys play yet again.
The Gifford’s rocky spell started before Ben’s accident and it carried on thereafter for a few games. It was not easy for the boys to play at all, given the tight knit community in which we live, but they did manage to do so. That they lost a few games was no big deal to me, not in the grand scheme of things, because there were other things on their mind. The team’s spirit was dulled by the pain and loss and it was obvious they were not able to perform at their normal level. So losing a few games didn’t matter, right? Well, oddly it did matter. These boys are not short of perspective and they have always seen the bigger picture, but they do not play football matches in order to lose. Winning a game of football is not everything, not in the bigger picture it isn’t, but in the context of a sporting occasion the spirit of competition takes over.
Gradually, the performances got better and the results improved. Ben is never, ever far away from the boys’ thoughts – the talk after the game was just as much about Monday’s tribute game at Bristol Manor Farm as it was about the game against Tytherington Rocks, believe me – and with that in mind, they have managed to regain their focus.
And we won today, 2-1. We should really have won by a few more – I know this is easy to say from a position of comfort from next to the dug out (if you can call being with Yardy for 90 minutes a comfort!) – but once we scored the first goal, I never doubted the final outcome.
With two games to go, the league title is in Stoke Gifford’s own hands. If we win them both, quite simply, we are champions. A few weeks ago, with results not looking so good, I felt that we were out of it. The season would fizzle out and we’d finish somewhere in the top four and actually feel some pride in that given everything that’s happened. There should be no pressure on the team now. They have fought through the most awful adversity and given themselves a chance. If they are able to take it, all well and good, but if events conspire against them then they will take it on the chin, move on and go again.
Back in the Beaufort Arms, the usual suspects were present, amongst them local hero Ben Bennett still making plans for the football club, as well as working to ensure Ben Hiscox’s memory lives on. Ben has a thick skin (someone told me this was to match his head, but I thought this unkind!) but the truth is he has been a crucial community figure. He is one of life’s do-ers, as well as being an excellent plasterer, and we in the village are lucky to have him around, especially when he manages to stay awake.
I know that Ben Hiscox would be very proud of the village boys whatever happens this year. They might come across as a bunch of raucous rufty-tufty young men who are experts in the art of having a good time, all of which is true, but they are each and every one of them real men who always knew how to laugh but now know how to cry.
I have no idea if the Gifford will win the title, but to misquote Kevin Keegan, “I’d love it if we won the league. Love it”. And whether or not they do win the league, I could not be more proud of them.
Up the village!