Two Words to Warm the Heart in Troubled Times

Today was a tough day at work. The two weeks that started Monday are my busiest two weeks of the year. I've got a lot of demanding suppliers to keep happy, difficult targets to achieve, and everything is happening so quickly I barely keep up with my routine paperwork. Still, through it all I have remained calm. I have maintained an inner stillness, evident to all,through this tough period. It's source can be expressed in two words that I now hold close to my heart: 'Bishop's Cleeve.'

Ah, Bishop's Cleeve! Until lunchtime two days ago I had never given the Gloucestershire village much thought. I may not have heard of it at all. But thanks to the fortuitous movements of some ping pong balls at Sloane Square, I have been studying a road atlas of the Cotswolds since Monday afternoon. Many, hopefully hundreds, of of fellow City supporters and I will be making a pilgrimage there to witness City's FA Cup Third Qualifying Round match, full of hope for another performance similar to the one we saw Saturday against Welling Rovers.

Bishop's Cleeve FC are in the Southern League Division 1 South & West. In layman's terms, they are situated two leagues below City (as opposed to Willand's place three leagues below). The club is the new home of former City favourite Steve Jones (who is doing his best to give Ryan Giggs a run for his money in the late-career fitness stakes). Bihsop's Cleeve have also just knocked off fellow Conference South club Weymouth to earn their place in the Third Qualifying Round. Considering the way City exited the cup so unsatisfactorily last season against a lower league team they would be foolish to approach the clash with anything but full respect for their opponents.

And yet.....seeing the fixture on the FA website filled me with joy. The City players cannot take for granted a victory over any opponent in this tournement, but if Adie Britton had been allowed to chose his own opponent one would think Bishop's Cleeve would have been on the shortlist. As well, their victory over Weymouth is not as impressive as might appear at first sight. Described as 'the Afghanistan of Non-League Football,' by a departing executive last season, Weymouth are still searching for a team other than Worcester City they can defeat. They are a club in free fall and an early exit to Bishop's Cleeve is just a staging post on their long decent. If Bath City can play with half as much determination as they showed against Willand they should do all right.

A victory would mean £7,500 in much needed prize-money. A victory would mean passage to the 4th Qualifying Round with more prize money and a potential ticket to the big show (the First Round Proper) for the winner. A victory would mean that City was engaged in a full-blown cup run, which could potentially boost attendances in all competitions. In a nutshell, a victory would be very good.

Hence the reason that I have been calming myself with my new mantra: 'Bishop's Cleeve.' If the City players play their normal game they should be able to beat Bishop's Cleeve handily. Substantial cup runs require substantial amounts of luck and City have gotten a second helping. Nothing is guaranteed but it is as much of a boost from Lady Luck as any of us could have hoped for.

Questions remain, though. As an American I feel I must ask, 'What is a Cleeve?' and 'Why do Bishop's have them?' So far the web is not forthcoming with any satisfactory answers. All the more reason to make my own investigations in person on a crisp, Autumn afternoon in ten days time.