From Euro 2024 to a lavender farm

It’s been all quiet for me lately, having been absorbed in Euro 2024 and now the Olympics.

This year’s Euro football tournament was a mixed affair. In England, there was great hope (as always) for the England team. This time there were genuine reasons to be optimistic.

The England team had some of the best players in the world. Harry Kane, the captain, had broken records in the German league (Bundesliga); Jude Bellingham shined in Spain; and Phil Foden was the English Premier League’s player of the year. The squad was packed with talented players.

England got off to a winning start in the group stage but there was some discontent about the style of play, which some considered boring. Inevitably, Gareth Southgate, the England manager, got a lot of flak. Football fans can be demanding: they want their team to win and play attractive football.

Fans were frustrated that some of the best players in the world, who excelled at their clubs, were producing such mediocre performances for their country. It highlighted that if the strategy and tactics are not right, the best players in the world can look ordinary. Their club teams played in a very different style.

Once the group stage finished, England finished in the easier half of the knockout draw. Spain, on the other hand, were in the more challenging half and had to play all the top teams.

England and Spain reached the final despite England, at one point, being about 90 seconds away from exiting the tournament. England had even won a penalty shootout — something that rarely happened; and they made it look easy. Surely, these were signs that this would be England’s year?!

Spain had easily been the best team of the tournament. Their attacking football was good to watch and produced results. It was just what every fan wanted of their national team. Spain struggled once — in the second half against France. They became quite negative and resorted to being a bit dirty. That hiccup aside, they looked unstoppable.

Spain dominated the final against England. They played with great fluency, keeping the ball for long spells and creating many chances. England had a few promising phases but failed to capitalise on them. When England equalised, there was a sense of destiny! England fans felt that the planets were continuing to align for England this year after 58 years without the men winning a trophy. Spain, however, were following another script. They took the lead with minutes to go and won the tournament. Neutral fans could not disagree with the outcome. England were heartbroken — again.

As expected, the England manager soon resigned. He had been England’s most successful manager since England won the World Cup in 1966. He had taken England to two Euro finals and a World Cup semi-final in his three tournaments. In international sport, winning is everything but Gareth Southgate has left an enduring legacy. He was, by all accounts, an incredibly empathetic manager of people. And even though he fell at the last hurdle, he had brought an urbaneness, calmness, and decency to the job.

After the Euros, we managed to get to the Cotswolds. It was a bit hot for a long walk, but we remembered that we’d passed a lavender farm on a walk in the Cotswolds last year. The farm was shut at the time but, this time, we had a couple of weeks of the season remaining. It was a beautiful farm with plenty of lavender and wildflowers. We enjoyed having a picnic by the flowers even though it looked like the whole of the Cotswolds had decided to come to the farm!