The Rugger Match Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis

Rhyme Scheme: A B CDEFE GFHIJKLMF FNOFFPQRNSTTUUVVWWJJ XXFFYYZZA2A2 B2WC2XD2E2AFAF2EG2NN FEH2FNCH2I2PNJ2FK2L2 FNM2N2O2P2FTANQ2R2S2 NL2NT2EL2H2U2NFNHK2V 2C2NW2AEW2D2 V2JNFD2M2H2V2X2W2V2W 2W2Y2FFNJZ2A3B3C3D3V NE3W2M2W2F3NJG3NH3W2 I3W2FF W2FNB2W2J3FW2V2NNNM2 FV2UK3V2L3NNFF D3 M2M3D3NND3NNV2N3W2NN W2FW2M2W2NO3JFW2W2FA FFNW2V2NFX2UUR2FE2P3 ND3V2FW2FW2NQ2Q3EUM2 NR3FEES3FV2V2NW2NENE NJENEW2EM2PEENNFFM2U T3ENEU3V2 E W2NW2EEV3P2EW3X3Y2ED 3N2WW2FW2FFM3NV2V2EY 3EFFFNZ3EV2FNA4FNQ3K 3V2Q2TFNB4D3D3W2NNNE NJ3R3C4D3D4D3W2W2

OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE QUEEN'S DECEMBER	A
	-
To Hugh Brooks	B
	-
I	-
	-
The walls make a funnel packed full the distant gate	C
Bars us from inaccessible light and peace	D
Far over necks and ears and hats I see	E
Policemen's helmets and cards hung on the ironwork	F
One shilling No change given Ticket holders only	E
	-
Oh Lord What an awful crush There are faces pale	G
And strained and faces with animal grins advancing	F
Stuck fast around mine We move we pause again	H
For an age then a forward wave and another stop	I
The pressure might squeeze one flat Dig heels into ground	J
For this white and terrified woman whose male insists	K
Upon room to get back Why didn't I come here at one	L
Why come here at all What strange little creatures we are	M
Wedged and shoving under the contemptuous sky	F
	-
All things have stopped the time will never go by	F
We shall never get in Yet through the standing glass	N
The sand imperceptible drops the inexorable laws	O
Of number work also here They are passing and passing	F
I can hear the tick of the turnstiles tick tick tick	F
A man a woman a man shreds of the crowd	P
A man a man till the vortex sucks me in	Q
And squeezed between strangers hurting the flat of my arms	R
I am jetted forth and pay my shilling and pass	N
To freedom and space and a cool for the matted brows	S
But we cannot rest yet Fast from the gates we issue	T
Spread conelike out a crowd of loosening tissue	T
All jigging on and making as we travel	U
Pod pod of feet on earth chix chix on gravel	U
Heads forward striding eagerly we keep	V
Round to the left in semi circular sweep	V
By the back of a stand excluded noting the row	W
Of heads that speck the top and caverned below	W
The raw rough timber back of the new made mound	J
Quicker The place is swarming Around around	J
Till the edge is reached and we see a patch of green	X
Two masts with a crossbar tapering white and clean	X
And confluent rows of people that merge and die	F
In a flutter of faces where the grand stand blocks the sky	F
We hurry along past ragged files of faces	Y
Flushing and quick peering for empty places	Y
I see one above me I step and prise and climb	Z
And stand and turn and breathe and look at the time	Z
Survey the field and note with superior glance	A2
The anxious bobbing fools who still advance	A2
	-
	-
II	-
	-
Ah They are coming still It is filling up	B2
It is full They come There is almost an hour to go	W
Yet all find room the dribbles of black disappear	C2
In the solid piles around that empty green	X
We are packed and ready now They might as well start	D2
But two forty five was their time and it's only ten past	E2
And it's got to be lived through I haven't a newspaper	A
I wish I could steal that little parson's book	F
I count three minutes slowly they seem like an hour	A
And then I change feet and loosen the brim of my hat	F2
And curse the crawling of time Oh body body	E
Why did I order you here to stand and feel tired	G2
To ache and ache when the time will never pass	N
In this buzzing crowd before all those laden housetops	N
Around this turf under the lid of the sky	F
I fumble my watch again it is two twenty	E
Twenty five minutes to wait One two three four	H2
Five six seven eight what is the good of counting	F
It won't be here any quicker aching hips	N
Bored brain unquiet heart you are doomed to wait	C
Why did I make you come We have been before	H2
Struggling with time fatigued and dull and alone	I2
In all this tumultuous chattering happy crowd	P
That never knew pain and never questions its acts	N
Never questions Do not deceive yourself	J2
Look at the faces around you active and gay	F
They are lined there are brains behind them breasts beneath them	K2
They have only escaped for an hour and even now	L2
Many like you have not escaped and away	F
Across the field those faces ascending in tiers	N
Each face is a story a tragedy and a doubt	M2
And the teams where they wait in the sacred place to the right	N2
Are bewildered souls who have heard of and brooded on death	O2
And thought about God But this is a football match	P2
And anyhow I don't feel equal to thinking	F
And I'm certain the teams don't they've something better to do	T
It is half past two and thank Heaven a minute over	A
We are all here now The laggards have all booked seats	N
And stroll in lordly leisure along the front	Q2
What a man Six foot silk hat brown face moustache	R2
What a fat complacent parson snuggling down	S2
In the chair there among all his cackling ladies	N
I have seen that youth before My neighbour now	L2
On my left shouts out to a college friend below us	N
Tommy Hallo Do you think we are going to beat 'em	T2
My watch Twenty to three That lot went quickly	E
Five minutes more is nothing I'm lively now	L2
And fit for a five mile run One two three four	H2
It isn't worth bothering now it's all but here	U2
Here here a rustle a murmur a ready silence	N
A billowing cheer why here they come running and passing	F
The challenging team By God what magnificent fellows	N
They have dropped the ball they pause they sweep onward again	H
And so to the end Here are the rest of them	K2
Swingingly up the field and back as they came	V2
With the cheers swelling and swelling They disappear	C2
And out like wind upon water come their rivals	N
With cheers swelling and swelling to run and turn	W2
And vanish and now they are all come out together	A
Two teams walking touch judges and referee	E
And they all line up dotted about like chessmen	W2
And the multitude holds its breath and awaits the start	D2
	-
	-
III	-
	-
Whistle A kick A rush a scramble a scrum	V2
The forwards are busy already the halves hover round	J
The three quarters stand in backwards diverging lines	N
Eagerly bent atoe with elbows back	F
And hands that would grasp at a ball trembling to start	D2
While the solid backs vigilant stray about	M2
And the crowd gives out a steady resolute roar	H2
Like the roar of a sea a scrum a whistle a scrum	V2
A burst a whistle a scrum a kick into touch	X2
All in the middle of the field He is tossing it in	W2
They have got it and downed it and whurry oh here they come	V2
Streaming like a waterfall oh he has knocked it on	W2
Right at our feet and the scrum is formed again	W2
And everything seems to stop while they pack and go crooked	Y2
The scrum half beats them straight with a rough smack	F
While he holds the ball debonair How it all comes back	F
As the steam goes up of their breath and their sweating trunks	N
The head low down the eyes that swim to the ground	J
The mesh of ownerless knees the patch of dark earth	Z2
The ball that comes in and wedges and jerks and is caught	A3
And sticks the dense intoxicant smell of sweat	B3
The grip on the moisture of jerseys the sickening urge	C3
That seems powerless to help the desperate final shove	D3
That somehow is timed with a general effort the sweep	V
Onward while enemies reel and the whole scrum turns	N
And we torrent away with the ball Oh I know it all	E3
I know it Where are they Far on the opposite line	W2
Aimlessly kicking while the forwards stand gaping about	M2
Deprived of their work Convergence They are coming again	W2
They are scrumming again below red hair black cap	F3
And a horde of dark colourless heads and straining backs	N
A voice rasps up through the howl of the crowd around	J
Triumphant now in possession over all the rest	G3
Of crowds who have lost the moving treasure to us	N
Push you devils They push and push and push	H3
The opponents yield the fortress wall goes down	W2
The ram goes through an irresistible rush	I3
Crosses the last white line and tumbles down	W2
And the ball is there A try A try A try	F
The shout from the host we are assaults the sky	F
	-
Deep silence Line up by the goal posts A man lying down	W2
Poising the pointed ball slanted away	F
And another who stands and hesitates and runs	N
And lunges out with his foot and the ball soars up	B2
While the opposite forwards rush below it in vain	W2
And curves to the posts and passes them just outside	J3
The touch judge's flag hangs still It was only a try	F
Three points to us The roar is continuous now	W2
The game swings to and fro like a pendulum	V2
Struck by a violent hand But the impetus wanes	N
The forwards are getting tired and all the outsides	N
Run weakly pass loosely there are one or two penalty kicks	N
And a feeble attempt from a mark The ball goes out	M2
Over the heads of the crowd comes wearily back	F
And lingering about in mid field the tedious game	V2
Seems for a while a thing interminable	U
And nothing happens till all of a sudden a shrill	K3
Blast from the whistle flies out and arrests the game	V2
Half time Unlocking The players are all erect	L3
Easy and friendly standing about in groups	N
Figures in sculpture better for mud stained clothes	N
Couples from either side chatting and laughing	F
And chewing lemons and throwing the rinds away	F
	-
	-
IV	D3
	-
The pause is over They part from each other sift out	M2
The backs trot out to their stations the forwards spread	M3
The captains beckon with hands and the ball goes off	D3
To volleys and answering volleys of harsher cheers	N
For the top of the hill is past we course to the close	N
We've a three point lead Can we keep it It isn't enough	D3
We have always heard their three quarters were better than ours	N
If they once get the ball They have got it he runs he passes	N
The centre dodges is tackled passes in time	V2
To the other centre who goes like a bird to the left	N3
And flings it out to the wing The goal is open	W2
He has only to run as he can No the back is across	N
He has missed him he has him they topple head over heels	N
And the ball bumps along into touch They are stuck on our line	W2
Scrum after scrum with those dangerous threes standing waiting	F
Threat after threat forced back a save a return	W2
And the same thing over again till the ball goes out	M2
Almost unnoticed and before we can see what is done	W2
That centre has kicked he has thought of the four points	N
The ball soars slackens keeps upright with effort	O3
Then floats between posts and falls ignored to the ground	J
Its grandeur gone while the touch judge flaps his flag	F
And the multitude becomes an enormous din	W2
Which dies as the game resumes and then rises again	W2
As battle of cry of triumph and counter cry	F
Defiant like great waves surging against each other	A
They work to the other corner they stay there long	F
They push and wheel there are runs that come to nothing	F
Till the noise wanes and a curious silence comes	N
They lead by a point their crowd is sobered now	W2
Anxious still lest a sudden chance should come	V2
Or a sudden resource of power in mysterious foes	N
Which may dash them again from their new precarious peak	F
Whilst we in our hearts are aware of the chilling touch	X2
Of loss of a fatal thing irrevocable	U
Feel the time fly to the dreaded last wail of the whistle	U
And see our team as desperate waves that dash	R2
Against a wall of rock to be scattered in spray	F
Yet fervour comes back for the players have no thought for the past	E2
Except as a goad to new effort not they will be chilled	P3
Fiercer and faster they fight a grimness comes	N
Into shoving and running and tackling and handing off	D3
We are heeling the ball now cleanly time after time	V2
Our half picks it up and instantly jabs it away	F
And the beautiful swift diagonal quarter line	W2
Tips it across for the wing to go like a stag	F
Till he's cornered and falls and the gate swings shut again	W2
Thirty fighting devils ten thousand throats	N
Thundering joy at each pass and tackle and punt	Q2
Yet the consciousness grows that the time approaches the end	Q3
The threat of conclusion grows like a spreading tree	E
And casts its shadow on all the anxious people	U
And is fully known when they stop as a man's knocked out	M2
And limps from the field with his arms round two comrades' necks	N
The gradual time seems to have suddenly leapt	R3
And all this while the unheeded winter sky	F
Has faded and the air gone bluer and mistier	E
The players when they drift away to a corner	E
Distant from us seem to have left our world	S3
We see the struggling forms tangling and tumbling	F
We hear the noise from the featureless mass around them	V2
But the dusk divides Finality seems to have come	V2
Nothing can happen now The attention drifts	N
There's a pause I become a separate thing again	W2
Almost forget the game forget my neighbours	N
And the noise fades in my ears to a dim rumour	E
I watch the lines and colours of field and buildings	N
So simple and soft and few in the vapoury air	E
I am held by the brightening orange lights of the matches	N
Perpetually pricking the haze across the ground	J
And the scene is tinged with a quiet melancholy	E
The harmonious sadness of twilight on willowed waters	N
Still avenues or harbours seen from the sea	E
Yet a louder shout recalls me I wake again	W2
Find there are two minutes left and it's nearly over	E
See a few weaklings already walking out	M2
Caring more to avoid a crush with the crowd	P
Than to give the last stroke to a ritual of courtesy	E
And a work of intangible art But we're all getting ready	E
Hope gone and fear except in the battling teams	N
Regret a quick movement of hazy forms	N
Oh quiet oh look there is something happening	F
Sudden one phantom form on the other wing	F
Emerges from nothingness is singled out	M2
Curving in a long sweep like a flying gull	U
Through the thick fog swifter as borne by wind	T3
Swerves at the place where the corner flag must be	E
And runs by Heaven he's over and runs and runs	N
And our hearts leap and our sticks go up in the air	E
And our hats whirl and we lose ourselves in a yell	U3
For a try behind the posts We have beaten them	V2
	-
	-
V	E
	-
Outside and a mob hailing cabs besieging the station	W2
Sticks overcoats scarves bowler hats intensified faces	N
Rushes apologies voices Simpson's at seven	W2
Hallo Jim See you next term I've just seen old Peter	E
They go to their homes to catch trains all over the city	E
All over England or many to make a good night of it	V3
Eat oysters drink more than usual dispute of the match	P2
For the match is all over and what being done does it matter	E
What happened last year I was here I should know but I don't	W3
Next year there will be another with another result	X3
Just such another crowd just as excited	Y2
And after next year for a year and a year and a year	E
Till customs have changed and things crumbled and all this strife	D3
Is a dim word from the past Why even to night	N2
When the last door has been locked the last groundsman will go	W
Leaving that field which was conquered and full of men	W2
With darkened houses around void and awake	F
Silently talking to the silent travelling moon	W2
The day passed They have gone again They will die	F
To night in the moon the neighbouring roofs will lie	F
Lonely and still all of their dwellers in bed	M3
The phantom stands will glisten the goal posts rise	N
Slanting their shadows across the grass as calm	V2
As though they had never challenged an eager swarm	V2
Or any ball had made their crossbars quiver	E
Clouds will pass and the city's murmur fade	Y3
And the open field await its destiny	E
Of transient invaders coming and going	F
What was the point of it Why did the heart leap high	F
Putting reason back to watch that fugitive play	F
Why not We must all distract ourselves with toys	N
Not a brick nor a heap remains the more durable product	Z3
Of all that effort and pain Yet sooner or later	E
As much may be said of any human game	V2
War politics art building planting and ploughing	F
The explorer's freezing the astronomer's searching of stars	N
The philosopher's fight through the thickening webs of thought	A4
And the writing of poems a hand a stir and a sinking	F
And so no more of the general game of the Race	N
That cannot know of its origin or its end	Q3
But strives for their own sake its courage and skill	K3
To increase till Frost or a Flying Flame calls Time	V2
I have seen this day men in the beauty of movement	Q2
A gallant jaw set the form of a hero that flew	T
Cunning a selfless flinging of self in the fray	F
Strength compassion control the obeying of laws	N
Victory and a struggle against defeat	B4
I think that the Power that gave us the bodies we have	D3
Can only be praised by our use of the things He gave	D3
That we are not here to turn our backs to the sun	W2
Or to scorn the delight of our limbs And for those who have eyes	N
The beauty of this is the same as the beauty of flowers	N
And of eagles and lions and mountains and oceans and stars	N
And I care not but rather am glad that the thought will recur	E
That in Egypt the muscles moved under the shining skins	N
As here and in Greece where Olympian champions died	J3
And in isles long ago where never a record was kept	R3
And now I'll go home and open a bottle of port	C4
And think upon beauty and God and the wonder of love	D3
That laughs at the shadow of Death and my vanished youth	D4
And the throbbing heart that beats its own drum to the grave	D3
Returning absurdly again to the fact that we won	W2
Content to let darkness deepen and stars shine	W2

John Collings Squire, Sir

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