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Woohoo!!!!! Championees Championees away away away!!!! I'd like to thank @Rousseau for running the tournament so efficiently as always, my fellow Gersnetters for their congrats, my family, friends, Stevie G, and everyone who has supported me through the seasons of mid-table mediocrity to this shock victory!

Sunday 8 pm: It's coming home Monday 8 am: It's hitting home

That's what I like about these forums...from a few drunken idiots throwing bottles and tipping bins to Nietzsche and Western philosophy in a matter of minutes/posts.

Not appalling. The likes of Moss, Cruise and Johnson should be nowhere near a cup final. Doesn’t excuse the yobs, though.

It’s been a good tournament. Some decent football and some very good individual performances. How would England have got on against either Spain or Belgium who looked better teams? Or did those two and to a lesser extent, Portugal, only look so good because they weren’t playing against England? Belgium might have beaten Italy. Spain should have. De Bruyne and Ronaldo come home with no medals both much better players than any Englishman. Pickford surprised me in the final. Brilliant goalkeeping. Unlikeable but he’s not there to win friends. The referees were mostly very good. They looked as if they had turned up to watch the game rather than star in their own dramas. The Tally goalie makes a cup winning save and strolls away like an accountant leaving the office at five o’clock. Lastly, for the football lads who follow Bristol to Sunderland or Carlisle to Newport on Wednesdays in November, I’m sorry England didn’t win. For the celebs and politicians - the PM in a football shirt, God help us - and for the face-painted, fancy-dressed oafs and oafesses who’ve never pushed a turnstyle or queued for tickets in their lives, I relish their despair. Except that the despair will be play-acting despair for a couple of days only then they’ll jumping on to some other bandwagon.

While I agree with every word you've written - especially the second paragraph - I would just point out that maybe, just maybe, those ticketless'fans' storming the stadium may have been motivated by the fact that the likes of someone called Kate Moss (and numerous other luvvies)was hogging a seat that should have gone to genuine footy fans. Still no excuse though.

I've been watching footage of the carnage before, during and after last night's game at Wembley - some really good examples of human excrement at its violent and degrading worst, backed up by the usual torrent of racist abuse online. Common consent seems to be that any hope of staging another World Cup in the UK is gone after the nostalgia of some replica 1970's hooliganism. Thankfully it all seems far removed from my sedate northern existence. Then I thought of Manchester in 2008, when I witnessed the same dregs of society practising their daily routines on the streets. Bodies comatose in the gutter, openly shooting up in the closes, fighting in the shops - all on a day I hoped to celebrate our own football achievement with my family and fellow supporters. They embarrassed me then, just as yesterday's mob must embarrass most England fans and the wider country. I draw this parallel in case anyone is tempted to make the mistake of thinking yesterday's scenes were somehow uniquely English and an excuse to suggest national differences. In any case, it usefully illustrates that football continues to attract a disproportionate number of boorish scumbags who I'd rather not have to rub shoulders with, ever. Sadly, I long since passed to point of hoping to see universal social decency and remain committed to a policy of segregation.

Good work running it @Rousseau too

It's worth noting amongst all the posturing on both sides of this debate (namely Robert Marshall and Club1872) that Mr Marshall was questioned by police over comments he made on an open forum. I won't pretend to know what's going on in this latest fan group clusterfuck but it's a timely reminder you can and will be held accountable for your online content.

Right enough, bound to be an improvement. I’d prefer him as Fm though

Unfortunately I don’t. Moss and Cruise and the rest are unlikely to have been at any match other than a prestigious event. They attend for publicity purposes to attach themselves to the event. The prestigious event is glad to have them for the same reasons but they aren’t football supporters. Perhaps I’m wrong. Maybe Cruise has a season ticket at Scunthorpe. Maybe Moss is dead keen on Leyton Orient.

Aye, saw that. Diddy behaviour.

For anyone ever caught in that situation timely reminder that the police don't know the law, and the words you are looking for are "no comment".

A big thank you to Rousseau for administrating such fun. The real story is Bearger's fall to mid-table mediocrity, after two season's domination. Congratulations to Tannochsidebear.

Fair do's to them, they were bloody good all tournament, but were ultimately undone by the better team, thankfully.

@Franc Ergs, which end of the wooden spoon do you want?

Our Euro 2020 Prediction League Champion! @Tannochsidebear

With Rangers Colts starting their Lowland League Campaign next weekend, a look at some familiar faces we will come up against this season. https://rfcyouths.wordpress.com/2021/07/11/former-academy-players-in-lowland-league/

"Everyone benefits from the discipline provided by Nurse Ratched"!

Kate who? I just dont do celeb nonsense and havent done for at least 8 or 9 years. The best thing I ever did was turn off my TV. (football excluded). But you make an extremely good point - the first OF games I started to watch were just 60-70 thousand fans and its still late 80s. There was zero posers or "celebs" (horrendous word). I am not going to go deep in here at all and I'll stick to football but what I will say is the change in the fan attendances is all designed.

Its all gone One flew over the cuckoos nest.....

I'd add predictable and embarrassing

Well done & congratulations, @Tannochsidebear

I must have read a good 40 lines before giving up.

Well that really takes the biscuit. Let's hope that you never win an Oscar. Congratulations on being this site's champion prognosticator. Teacakes all round?

You have superseded Peter Manuel as Tannochside's most famous/notorious son.

There are on the Email it's not copied across unfortunately.

Paragraphs are useful things.

Yeah, I know. God, I absolutely hate tattoos. I was being a bit facetious. 'Fraid those yobs are not exclusive to England though.

In what way 'appalling'? Because I venture to suggest (with suitable qualification) that the rich and famous shouldn't be entitled to seats when they are most likely not real football fans? And I didn't excuse the hooligan behaviour.

Im not buying the age excuse for Saka, thats nothing to do with it - Rooney at 19 would have stepped up and blasted one in. Its more about the personality / confidence of Saka - he is obviously a bit of a shy lad and he hasnt taken a penalty for Arsenal before - thats more to do with it rather than age.

Ah, come on asil - Tom Cruise is a regular at English football matches and fully deserved his seat last night. ?

Bill, spot on sir. Having these affairs on our own shores brings out the worst of humanity.

Thanks @Rousseau for the doing the hard work, much appreciated as always. Congratulations to the Champion, @Tannochsidebear

Remember when they tried the Golden Goal? That was soon abandoned. Penalties are harsh but they are assuredly not a lottery; they are a test of skill and nerve.

Cant abide all this crap of the English manager and media feeling sorry for the three who missed their penalties all this giving them a big hug I was always a bad loser and probably have given them a roasting then a good hard kick in the balls.

Wasnt concerned by Italy's first 45 I knew they would prevail in the end and leave old compo £900 to the good ?

Penalties are a bad way to lose a final but they are also a bad way to win one. Italy's last two trophies have been won on penalties.If the match was decided on points then Italy would have won quite convincingly, so I wouldn't argue against the result as such, but there must be a better way of deciding things. Personally I think that the number of players on the pitch should be reduced progressively, creating more space and allowing the match to be settled in open play, rather than a tacked on competition. There is some artificiality in that approach as well, of course, but, while it is one thing to have earlier rounds settled by penalties, it is bit demeaning for a championship to be decided on them.

Was there on a plate for England after Chiesa went off injured. A better manager would have capitalised.

As yes, both later ran aground in a pettifog, if memory serves.....

The SNP administration is giving us a taste of what "Independence" would be like. Club 1872 is giving us a taste of what "Fan Ownership" would be like. On the available evidence, M'lud, I should say get both to, well, fuck.