The Magic of the Cup

Get the drinks in. I’ll grab the lucky table while it’s free.
Ok.Usual?
Of course.

He wasn’t usually superstitious. But the team hadn’t lost in the Cup since Joe could remember switching from his regular pint to having a Guinness before each match. Some bad habits are good ones. Especially if you believe them to be.

Pete brought over the drinks. The lucky table was theirs. Yes!

Thanks.
Is Stan coming?
Yeah. Bringing an old mate apparently.
Who’s that then? Anyone I know?
Some bloke he used to work with, think he said. He worked abroad for a bit didn’t he? I can’t remember much about it though.
Somewhere East.
Probably.
Well I hope he doesn’t jinx us. I’m getting nervous.
You’d do well to cut all this superstition out. You can’t live with it all the time.
It’s only a bit of fun.

Joe was nervous though. He didn’t like the idea of another person invading their regular pre-match drink. Especially as it was being televised today. The cameras always brought them luck.

Before too long Stan arrived, wearing, Joe was pleased to note, his early 80’s era away shirt. Good sign that. However, he wasn’t too pleased about Stan’s friend who appeared from the far bar wearing the opposition’s colours. Not that he didn’t like having a bit of banter with rival fans. Just not on Cup days. Before the match. Disrupting the build up. He could feel the pressure mounting.

Stan’s mate was drinking from a tankard. One of those pewter type of things.

Twat.
Joe immediately thought,
I bet he thinks that’s a lucky tankard.
He started to bite his nails.

Hi. Sam.

Stan’s mate, Sam, thrust his huge hand towards Joe. Joe hesitantly shook it. He wasn’t feeling too great by now. He could feel his hand getting clammy. He had to let go of these irrational thoughts. Sequences don’t matter. It’s illogical. It doesn’t matter. It was no good though. He was on the verge of losing it. He didn’t even know this bloke but he was hating him more and more by the second. He realised all his mates were staring at him. Why did Stan have to bring him? Why couldn’t they have had their pre-match pint in the usual way? It’s no good. Gonna have to go. But I always do the pre-match piss last. If I go first I’ll jinx it. Gotta go though. Bastard.

They won the Cup that year for the second season running.