It’s been an interesting week or so, to say the least.

Two pens not given v Leicester, one in injury time. Then a soft pen given against us v Stoke, also in injury time. And Cédric Kipré booked in both incidents, meaning a two-game ban.

And all of these pens/not pens apologised for, after the event, by the referees’ body.

Then the lovable John Busby - ref from the Leicester game and presumably still smarting from the criticism - mediates on a Leif Davis retrospective three-game ban for apparently pulling someone’s hair. Like a schoolgirl.

Four points lost, two players lost, Mark Ashton and Kieran McKenna both pulling their hair out.

However, the week brought brighter news. Middlesbrough unexpectedly lost at home on Wednesday, then unexpectedly drew at home on Saturday, while the Sky Blues of Coventry and the royal blues of Millwall both also unexpectedly lost at home. And Hull lost away.

Town’s laboured 2-0 win at bottom club Sheffield Wednesday wasn’t particularly shocking in itself, although Ben Johnson returning from the wilderness to arguably claim the Man Of The Match award, certainly was. And the fact that we got given a penalty.

But we love it, really, don’t we? All this silly nonsense we call Championship football.

So this poem’s more about our addiction to the overall drama than this match specifically. The ups and downs, the shocks and the baffled smiles at the end of an annoying and then delightfully surprising week.

See you again for more of the same next week!

Sheffield Wednesday 0:2 Ipswich Town, 14/03/2026

Shockaholics

Good grief, brief relief from all of the beef beneath
the soft pen confessions and suspensions for Leif
and Cédric, pig-sick, kicked, a stick to beat us.
A week you’d rather seek the beach
and reach for margaritas.
But what doesn’t defeat us
can lead us up, feed us.
Treat us intravenous
like provisions for a foetus.
In this division’s guises lies
unadvertised surprises.
Boro boos and two blues lose;
new bruises of many sizes.
Frustrated Town, castrated down
at this bottom-dwelling patch.
The biggest shock was mocked Ben Johnson;
man of a shocking match.
Tense, too, despite the two
goals, a clean sheet and a pen.
The table, and I, can try to lie
but why would we... when we’re high again?
But then…
this is what we love above
the glittering lights and money.
The diorama of drama and karma
that charms our tummies funny (or runny).
The rights, the wrongs, the highlights from
the qu!te shite to shambolic.
The cocks, the crocks, the points dropped,
blocks in the box;
we’re all
shockaholics.

StowTractor added 13:55 - Mar 18 Love it as usual.
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