Memorable, historic, unifying. This is England

What better reason to give in to the unrelenting clamour for me to restart blogging (an off-hand remark in passing every few months) than potentially the greatest night in England's glorious sporting history?

In a single night, 11 heroic and passionate warriors sacrificially gave their all to unite not just the nation but the whole continent. At a time of almost unprecedented political turmoil and cultural upheaval, what else could have brought about such a sense of togetherness and universal agreement? What else could have brought Wales, Russia, Iran, Australia, South Africa and the whole of Europe to share an undivided opinion? 
What other unifying force could have led to people from all spheres of life and from across the full political spectrum to be so unanimously of one mind? No longer are we debating formations, starting line ups, tactics or even what might constitute success. Such was the scarcely describable performance and result of the English national football team against Iceland. 

Unquestionably it will go down in history to be discussed, remembered and referred to. A landmark against which any future results even remotely similar (if that is even possible) will be compared. Already the benefits are being felt by the journalism industry, sprouting a plethora of articles discussing every possible angle and perspective. My personal favourite is this creative journalist's view on England's player ratings, he must truly have put his heart and soul into giving every single outfield player a 4/10. 

As the rugby and even cricket teams attempt to sow discord by actually winning, we can thank our footballers for their efforts in the cause of international unity. As we turn our attention to Wimbledon, the Olympics, the Ryder Cup (essentially anything to distract ourselves from what we just saw) let's be grateful that we potentially move on from a manager who has only lost one match in the Euros (Roy) to someone with his own outstanding record at the Euros (Gareth):



Exciting times ahead...

Amazing Team Spirit Ryders High

If you didn't watch the golf last Sunday night, then please, please find a replay or highlights package of some description. In the sporting world, there's nothing quite like the drama produced by a stirring comeback against the odds. So, at the weekend, the culmination of a fascinating few days of gold (excuse the "typo") resulted in an entire continent uniting behind a team of twelve men showing a scarcely believable level of nerve, passion and spirit and claiming a stunning victory in the enemy's back yard.

Golf is one of the most individual sports there is, lacking even the competitive companionship produced by one-on-one clashes such as in tennis, snooker or boxing. There's no team element, no supporting your buddy and no reliance on someone else when you're struggling - it's just you, your caddy, your clubs and hours upon hours of concentration. 

The future's bright...

So you could be forgiven for imagining that the Ryder Cup would lack a real sense of spirit and togetherness, but instead it seems to inspire the very definition of a team sport, at least for 3 days every other year. A squad of footballers play and train together constantly, almost all year round. And yet there rarely, if ever, seems to be a unity that comes even close to the weekend scenes at Medinah. (Of course the best bit of a win is not the team spirit or indeed the victory itself, but the delightful bitterness of the losing team, icing on any sporting cake.)

This summer's major sporting event saw a sense of team shared by a whole nation. Of course this was greatly aided by Team GB's success but there's no doubt there was something different about how the entire country was behind every athlete representing these Isles. Even the usually lukewarm popularity of Andy Murray* was at boiling point when he was representing us all, rather than just himself. So is it a nationalistic fervour ingrained within us all that means we care that much more, or is it just because we're glory-hunters on an international scale?

But for a few months and different parental travel plans, I might have been Born in the USA (yes I love the Boss), but struggle to imagine how my banner could ever have been star-spangled. I feel thoroughly British, and evidently European enough to have been utterly supporting a German when it came to that final putt. Whatever, the reason, I'm certain that when its your country (or continent) involved, somehow it matters more.

* There is a strong chance that Andy Murray will win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year, if he does, it must surely eclipse all previous ironic sporting awards.