Mat Riches – “Free Kicks”

Free Kicks

I was still on crutches, foot in plaster,
when your challenge came flying: Go in goal.
Our friendship healing, I lurched between sticks,
insulation tape on handles to stop

fresh blisters turning worse. You curled free kicks
and took us to penalties—Best of five.
At two-all, I hopped like a jackhammer
to take a punt at a route-one free kick

and fell flat on my face—breaking the toe
again, while the ball kept soaring upwards.
It’s been years, we’re cup-tied into routines.
I’m injury-free now. Take your best shot.

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Mat Riches is ITV’s unofficial poet-in-residence. Recent work has been in Wild Court, The New Statesman, The Friday Poem, Bad Lilies, Frogmore Papers and Finished Creatures. He co-runs Rogue Strands poetry evenings. A pamphlet is due via Red Squirrel Press in 2023. Twitter @matriches Blog: Wear The Fox Hat