Friends from Rayleigh miss England v Poland game

7:50am Thursday 18th October 2012 in News By Emma Thomas

The friends enjoying a beer before they found out the game had been cancelled The friends enjoying a beer before they found out the game had been cancelled

DEVASTATED football fans were left out of pocket after England's World Cup qualifier was called off.

Wesley Fitzgerald, from Rayleigh, flew out on a chartered plane to Poland with six friends for the England game.

They each paid £260 for the flight, organised through a sports agency, as well as £35 for the ticket.

The lads touched down in the morning looking forward to seeing the team play before the flight home at 1am Wednesday  but the game was called off after heavy rain left the pitch waterlogged.

Officials had decided not to close the Warsaw stadium's roof - leaving it open to the elements.

Wesley, 32, said the only reason they knew it had been called off was messages from friends back home.

He said: “We had booked a day trip with a company that chartered a plane.
“As we headed towards the ground we started to get texts and tweets from home saying the game was off. The pitch was flooded which we thought was odd because the stadium had a roof. They were still letting fans in when we got there.

“There were no announcements in the ground. On the big scoreboard there was a message saying there would be a further pitch inspection. We kept getting messages from friends saying the match was off.”

About 2,500 England fans travelled to Poland for Tuesday's fixture and many of them couldn’t return yesterday for the rescheduled game as they had already booked their return flights.

Wesley said they could only get another flight back out by paying the company again.

He said: “The company we were with said if they got enough interest they would charter another plane but it means people have got to find somewhere to stay, book time off work. There were six or seven hundred people on the two planes.”

Comments (5)

9:04am Thu 18 Oct 12

Rich+Carol says...

They didnt miss much, just a few quid and they didnt miss any football as England dont play any football.
They didnt miss much, just a few quid and they didnt miss any football as England dont play any football. Rich+Carol

12:22pm Thu 18 Oct 12

thenapster says...

Dear Rich+Carol

What a well-thought out response. I bet you spent the hour after the article was posted thinking of a few bon mots to use.

It wasn't "just a few quid". It was a sizeable amount of money.

I assume you are not a football fan. You will not understand what it is like to support a team in every way possible. Of course if these guys were Brazilian, I would imagine the football would be more exciting. But given they are Southend fans, any football is exciting! Besides which, it is not really about the football, although that is the topic, it is about the camaraderie. The feeling of community.

I suppose since your post has not inspired a flock of comments you do not belong to such a community.

Let me give you an example of what I mean. A fellow Southend fan recently passed away. He died suddenly and unexpectedly. He had no children and few relatives. However, he was a well-liked, and respected fan and member of the Southend community. We decided to show our respects, and filled the church, and held a wake after to celebrate his memory.

Football unites people, it makes us belong.

I feel gutted for Mr. Fitzgerald and his fellow fans. FIFA and the Polish FA are incompetents. But this does not mean you have to comment just to get your tuppenceworth.

Rant and opinion over.

Thanks for reading.

ps I'm available for bar mitzvahs, weddings and christenings.

pps This message was sponsored by shrimperzone. The discerning website for discerning Southend fans.
Dear Rich+Carol What a well-thought out response. I bet you spent the hour after the article was posted thinking of a few bon mots to use. It wasn't "just a few quid". It was a sizeable amount of money. I assume you are not a football fan. You will not understand what it is like to support a team in every way possible. Of course if these guys were Brazilian, I would imagine the football would be more exciting. But given they are Southend fans, any football is exciting! Besides which, it is not really about the football, although that is the topic, it is about the camaraderie. The feeling of community. I suppose since your post has not inspired a flock of comments you do not belong to such a community. Let me give you an example of what I mean. A fellow Southend fan recently passed away. He died suddenly and unexpectedly. He had no children and few relatives. However, he was a well-liked, and respected fan and member of the Southend community. We decided to show our respects, and filled the church, and held a wake after to celebrate his memory. Football unites people, it makes us belong. I feel gutted for Mr. Fitzgerald and his fellow fans. FIFA and the Polish FA are incompetents. But this does not mean you have to comment just to get your tuppenceworth. Rant and opinion over. Thanks for reading. ps I'm available for bar mitzvahs, weddings and christenings. pps This message was sponsored by shrimperzone. The discerning website for discerning Southend fans. thenapster

12:46pm Thu 18 Oct 12

Rlch+Carol says...

Oh sorry I didn't realise you were Southend fans, my deepest condolences to you all. A wasted trip to Poland to look at a water logged pitch was probably more exciting than a game at Roots Hall.
Oh sorry I didn't realise you were Southend fans, my deepest condolences to you all. A wasted trip to Poland to look at a water logged pitch was probably more exciting than a game at Roots Hall. Rlch+Carol

6:04pm Thu 18 Oct 12

mcnasty says...

Rlch+Carol wrote:
Oh sorry I didn't realise you were Southend fans, my deepest condolences to you all. A wasted trip to Poland to look at a water logged pitch was probably more exciting than a game at Roots Hall.
Just sit behind your keyboard and mock.
[quote][p][bold]Rlch+Carol[/bold] wrote: Oh sorry I didn't realise you were Southend fans, my deepest condolences to you all. A wasted trip to Poland to look at a water logged pitch was probably more exciting than a game at Roots Hall.[/p][/quote]Just sit behind your keyboard and mock. mcnasty

8:55am Fri 19 Oct 12

PJR-121 says...

They were on their way to the stadium when they received texts and calls to say the game was off...

Wasn't the announcement made AFTER the game was supposed to have started? Kick off was delayed by 45 minutes! If that's the case, the supporters here would only have got in just in time to see the second half...
They were on their way to the stadium when they received texts and calls to say the game was off... Wasn't the announcement made AFTER the game was supposed to have started? Kick off was delayed by 45 minutes! If that's the case, the supporters here would only have got in just in time to see the second half... PJR-121

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