The Universal Constants

Anyone who has watched football over the past 40 years, as I have, will tell you that nothing seems to last, all is change - and it can be difficult to keep up with the speed of that change. Players come and go, clubs are promoted one year and relegated the next, ownership changes hands, the very organisation of the leagues our teams compete to win is unrecognisable from the old Football League we old'uns remember so fondly. Even the pies are different nowadays, and for the price of everything, from admission and merchandise to a hamburger outside the ground, the trend is up, up, up. For those of us who can feel bewildered by so much change, and the unfamiliarity of the football scene these days as compared to those of the halcyon 70's, it's comforting to reflect that here are still three big constants, factors which have remained and seem unlikely ever to change.

The fans are ever loyal, ever optimistic, and ultimately always disappointed.

The England team still flatter to deceive, and continue to let their country down.

And lastly, LIW and Jonty remain blithering idiots, incapable of a single coherent thought.