The Worst Football Ground In Britain

When you are criticised, it's so easy to get defensive and justify yourself. I should know, I'm an expert. But when you see others rightly criticised, you don't want much truck with all the defensiveness.

There's been a high profile example of that in our community this last week. Last Sunday The Observer (a national Sunday newspaper for the benefit of non-Brits reading this) published a piece called Simply The Worst. It named our local football team, Gillingham as having the worst ground in Britain.

Of course the local press is up in arms. The local MP has sprung to the defence of the town. A spokesman for the football club objects to the reporter in The Observer talking about what a lousy walk it is from the train station to the ground, when you could come through much nicer parts of Gillingham such as Hempstead. Except you don't come that way from the train. You do go through a grotty area. The High Street is crummy and it is possible to witness threats of violence along there. There are boarded up premises and too many of the shops are down-market to make it an attractive area. I haven't been to the football ground itself for about four years now, but on that occasion the catering certainly was poor. It's no good the club banging on about their conference centre and banqueting facilities: an away supporter doesn't see those.

If I had grown up here, I'd have probably joined the chorus of people booing The Observer. The trouble is, as an incomer, their report looks too accurate to me. Isn't it just one of those fundamental facts about life that transformation often starts when we stop blaming others and start taking personal responsibility for the mess we're in?