So tonight England begins what is sure to be another arduous plod through a world cup with 23 men (and one manager) all competing to become the scapegoat for our inevitable yet as ever, desperately heroic exit.
My first experience of England in a major tournament was 1996; Shearer, Gazza, the Semi-Final and one monster of an anthem. My expectations were set pretty high after that, 18 years later they are as low as everyone else in the country.
18 years since Euro 96? Wow. It was 30 years of hurt back then, I guess that makes it 48 years this time out. I mean the fact that Baddiel, Skinner and The Lightning Seeds haven’t trotted out their cash cow this year suggests we don’t have a lot to sing about.
There have been three official versions of this song, the one in 1996 started it all featuring rousing commentary from the past 30 years noteably the 1966 win, 1970 -v- Brazil and Italia ’90.
It was the song the country needed at the time but they got the one they deserved two years later a more confident, more relevant outing just two years after Southgate’s penalty finding inspiration from Shearer, Gazza and Stuart Pearce’s performances in 1996 as well as the typically war-compared 0-0 qualification securing draw in 1998 with Italy whom obviously we play tonight.
The 2010 version is a horrific, celebrity smattered choir backed mismash of the 1996 version, it’s horrible to listen to and they didn’t even bother doing a video for it. It exists though, for the curious.
So, England -v- Italy 2014. I know it’s past all our bed times but come on England, let’s do this!
30 Years Three Lions ’96
32 Years Three Lions ’98
44 Years Three Lions ’10
