World Cup I

First half - Group stage
Eating the football, hope, disappointment and a bite

Let me just say from the start or should I say kickoff I'm not a football fanatic. I do not have a team to which I owe allegiance or even one that I can muster anything more than passing interest. The local team, the team of my current town of residence is Preston North End Football Club so called presumably because it is a football club with their ground at the north end of a town called Preston. PNE, as it is known, was a founding member of the Football League and in the inaugural season were unbeaten and thus become the first league champions. In the same season they won the FA Cup without conceding a goal and became the first club to achieve the English football "Double". An auspicious start, unfortunately with the exception of a few positive blips (if you can have positive blips), one of which was their 1938 FA Cup victory over Huddersfield Town, it has been somewhat down hill for the club since then.

The team of my youth was Barnsley F.C., a team struggling in the lower half of the then 4th Division. There were division one teams within striking distance, the two Sheffield teams and the then mighty Leeds United to name just three, but the truth was, they were out of my league financially. This didn't stop me penning LUFC on my school satchel and books in that funny thick sausage writing so loved by modern day graffiti artists. LUFC supporters were hard, Barnsley supporters less so.

Given my limited financial situation, and the fact that my mum wouldn't let me shave my head and wear Doc Marten's, Barnsley was the team that I went to watch the most. Every other Saturday afternoon in the season me and my mate 'Rolo' would wait on the main road, opposite the Bulls Head for the supporters bus. A coach supplied by Borrow's Buses of Wombwell and organised by an old guy who to misquote Brian Hanrahan's dispatch from the Falklands 'counted us (young'ens) off the bus and counted us back on again'. For half a crown, 2/6 in old money or 12½p in modern era coinage we could get the coach to Oakwell, get admission to the ground, buy a Bovril at halftime, get the coach back, then call into the village chippy for six pennyworth of chips and some free fish 'bits'.

Those chips were the best in the world...

My eats before, during and after the group stage games of choice may have been more varied, and, occasionally just a little more healthy, but I doubt I will be reminiscing about them next week, never mind in 40 years time, so for the record this is how I ate the World Cup.

Thursday 12th June
Opening ceremony and opening game, Brazil vs Croatia
Brazil beat Croatia 3-1. I have a plater of mini sweet peppers stuffed with a cream cheese, crème fraîche and spring onion mixture to accompany half a dozen baked 'fried' chicken drumsticks. Sounds odd and I was a bit sceptical but it work worked well. Usual trick of soaking the drumsticks in butter milk before coating them in seasoned and spiced flour but then popping them in the oven in a roasting tray containing a little melted butter. I dusted off my decanter and decanted a bottle of supermarket own French plonk.

Friday 13th June
Spain vs Netherlands,
Unlucky Friday the 13th for Spain who went down 5-1 to the Dutch. Delayed my evening meal to have Peppered Mackerel Potato Bake while watching the game. Peppered Mackerel Potato Bake is  basically sliced waxy potatoes layered with onion and flaked peppered mackerel, covered in cream and baked in the oven. Not actually the killer it sounds and I did have salad to go with it. Bottle of very dry white to subdue the richness of the cream and clear the palate.

Saturday 14th June
England vs Italy
England's opening game. Late night kickoff so watching in the pub. Several pints of Cumberland soaked up with potato based snacks and strange but strangely irresistible little garlic breads as purchased by the nibble master of our group. Plain, prawn cocktail and salt n vinegar. Would have liked Pork Scratchings but I'm not sure they are acceptable in mixed company. England lost 2-1. Not an embarrassing performance. Still optimistic.

Sunday 15th June
France vs Honduras
Sizzled Sausage Pasta before the game. Good old quick and easy standby. Sausages stripped of their skins broken into bit size chunks and cooked in a little oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoes before adding the sliced sun-dried tomatoes and tossing with cooked pasta shapes. Chifferi rigati is my current shape of choice at the moment. Any meaty pasta needs a good chianti and I didn't let my sizzled sausage down. France won 3-0.

Monday 16th June
Germany vs Portugal
Promise of a good game and tea time kickoff so a knee tea is order of the day. Kedgeree is just the thing. Little cheat, microwaved some smoked haddock and flaky hake and used frozen rice, just a bit of an assembly job really. Worked well but to be honest curried rice, fish, boiled eggs and a great big dollop of tomato ketchup, what could be better. Kedgeree isn't kedgeree without ketchup. Portugal were disappointing I thought. 4-0 to Germany.

Tuesday 17th June
Brazil vs Mexico
Another promising game but kickoff not till eight so pre-match meal. Grilled gammon steak, steamed Jersey Royals and Sauce Bechamel Aux Champignons or as we used to say in Yorkshire, mushrooms in white sauce (great on toast!). Snipped the edges of my gammon but it still curled up under the grill. Bit disappointing but not as disappointing as the match, no score draw.

Wednesday 18th June
Australia vs Netherlands & Spain vs Chile
Out most of the day and the Australia Holland game on at tea time so picked up a pizza and a big tub of coleslaw. Love coleslaw with pizza but shop bought repeats on me for hours later. Should have known better. Spain Chile on at eleven. Watched with a big big bowl of Doritos for company. Part of a BOGOF deal so I don't feel too guilty. They had a distinct taste of coleslaw!  The Dutch beat the Aussies 3-2 and Chileans beat the Spanish 2-0.

Thursday 19th June
Uruguay vs England
Important game and an evening kickoff. Loaded the coffee table with a selection of tapas. Patatas bravas, because it's compulsory, smoky chicken skewers, garlic prawns, Sherried chorizo and tortilla made in my little one egg frying pan. This is the way to eat, especially when washed down with rough red wine drunk from a tumbler. England lose 2-1. Things are not looking good!

Friday 20th June
Italy vs Costa Rica
Tea time game again. Super sloppy, super cheesy macaroni cheese, baked with a handful of cheddar sprinkled on top. Smoked streaky bacon cooked in the oven between two baking sheets till crisp and crunchy. Huge serving of the mac-cheese in my trusty large pasta dish topped off with broken bacon bits. Comfort food! Costa Rica 1 Italy 0

Saturday 21st June
Germany vs Ghana
Caught the first half of the game while getting ready to go out and meet the usual suspects for a beer or two. Had tea earlier but can't remember what! 2 all draw, who'd have thought it.

Sunday 22nd June
USA vs Portugal
Had lunch but again can't remember what, well it was weekend. Had a walk to the pub in the afternoon and still there for the USA game. Only half watched the game, too busy talking daft, but I did get my Pork Scratchings. Another two all draw. Are the Americans finding their feet or are Portuguese losing theirs!

Monday 23rd June
Netherlands vs Chile & Cameroon vs Brazil
Final round of games so two games at 5 and two games at 9. It may have been planned to stop any skulduggery (as if!) but it's also much better to plan meals around. Today's offering Pasta con le sarde, pasta with sardines. I couldn't get fresh sardines and I don't like the scales that seem to be left on tinned ones so to be precise it was pasta with pilchards. I've no idea what the Italian for pilchard is but combined with currents and pine nuts in the Sicilian fashion they are great. A nice chilled Soave worked a treat. The Dutch beat Chile 2-0 and the Brazilians round off their group stage with an 4-1 win.

Tuesday 24th June
Costa Rica vs England & Greece vs Ivory Coast
England playing for pride. Brined pork chop with buttery mash and braised peas. New recipe! Strange idea brining, especially since the amount of complaining we do about the addition of water injected into our meat. That said it was a nice tasty chop and quite juicy despite having to give it an extra 10 mins in the oven. Will be trying this technique again. Greece win 2-1. While England failed to save any pride with a 0-0 draw, Uruguay literally took a bite out of Italy!

Wednesday 25th June
Nigeria vs Argentina & Ecuador vs France
A day of culinary shame! Late afternoon in town and I realise I've not had any lunch. Chicken burger from a local chicken shop eaten al fresco then washed down with a beer in my local. Unfortunately led astray by one of my favourite barmaids so not in a fit state to start cooking by the time I leave. Chicken kebab from the little place I pass on my way home. In my defence when you are hungry (and full of beer) it would take a stronger man than me not to be tempted by those delicious smells. France draw 0-0 and Argentina win 3-2.

Thursday 26th June
USA vs Germany & Algeria vs Russia
Last games of the group stage. Day off tomorrow but today Salmon and prawn risotto. Salmon pre-cooked in a little vermouth, peppercorns and a bay leaf. Risotto cooked using very light chicken stock with a little saffron. The prawns were an after thought. They were tough little blighters, cooked with shell on and frozen, not one of my best buys. A good risotto is a thing of joy and this, despite the prawns was no exception. It's the butter added before the mantecare that does it. Had to be paired with a white. Algeria and Russia draw one all and the USA have a no shame 1-0 defeat by Germany.

It has been a long couple of weeks, my diet hasn't been the best, my alcohol intake could have been a bit less and England could have done a lot better but I've enjoyed it. Now for the second half, the knockout stage. It may be the kiss of death but I fancy Holland to make the final.

We will see...