Football, football, football

I have been watching loads and loads of football over the last week due to the wonderful World Cup being on and me being in the alright position of being around at home all day. I have finally seen the up side of writing up a PhD, namely the loads of free time that is potentially afforded to you being used for something that you enjoy doing and not feeling guilty or crap about doing it.

People may disagree, but I think football is a great thing both in terms of the game itself and also for it ability to bring men together and have something common to talk about.

Men are often closed and emotionally deficient souls, who sometimes struggle to talk to anyone in a relaxed manner but the common ground for discussion that is the World Cup breaks through that somewhat.

I have been in a few countries in the world and talked to many people from many countries here in England too and you can bet that if you need something to have a way in and talk to people, the subject of football will be the key.

In Romania 6 years ago we ended up playing football against some guys who lived in the town we were staying in. It didn;t matter that we couldn't speak Romanian at all and they had very limited English, we became friends by kicking a small, white, leather bound object around a pitch for a while every night.

Then, in Durban a couple of years ago, my limited knowledge of the Kaizer Chiefs (not the band! The Jo'burg based football team) made getting to know the guy we were working with, Amon, so much easier. Conversations about "Shoes" Mosheeau, the Chiefs midfield maestro, broke the ice nicely and created an ease of conversation that may have taken too long to get to.

Also in Durban I spent a time one afternoon kicking a football around with a young guy from the site we were working on. Again there was a complete language barrier that was smashed with a well placed right foot shot.

Those who complain at this time of year shouldn't be too quick to criticise and just drink in the atmosphere and a bit of the play. Its been a great tournament so far this year, with goals and great play in almost every match that has been on and Brazil are still yet to get to where people know where they can get.

So watch a few matches, enjoy the spectacle and try and file a few of the names and big results away in your memory. You don't know when you'll find yourself sitting beside a Ghanaian and find that bringing up Gyan's goal against the Czech Republic opens so many doors.