The Gardeners' World Blog

Pele famously described football as "The Beautiful Game", John Keats wrote that "A thing of beauty is a joy forever".

Therefore, logically, a football match should be "a joy forever".

Then again, someone else - and Google doesn't seem to know who - said "that beauty is in the eye of the beholder". For "beauty" read the "Beautiful Game", and for "beholder", read "spectator". One fan's glorious rearguard action is another's cynical parking of the team bus in front of the goal.

If you fought your way through that tortured analogy, you may be prepared to stick with me while I describe a Saturday afternoon out at Arsenal v Everton.