GENERAL INTERVIEW

Football Ramble: It’s kicking off!

Published on August 30, 2023

With the football season well underway, Football Ramble is here to remind that football doesn’t have to be so serious…

The football season is back in business and Football Ramble is following hot on its heels, bringing a wholly unserious look at all the headlines on and off the pitch. Now into the show’s seventeenth year, Marcus Speller, Luke Moore, Andy Brassell, Jim Campbell, Pete Donaldson and Vithushan Ehantharajah are back with four episodes every single week, covering everything from the Premier League’s biggest stories to which animal recently invaded a pitch in South America.

We asked Vish, Jim and Pete some questions to find out a bit more about their fellow Ramblers and how they would all deal with life in the Premier League – strap in!

Let’s start in the obvious place. If one of them had to score a penalty to save your life, who would you pick to take it – Vish or Pete?

Jim: Vish, because even with stakes that high I can easily imagine Pete getting distracted, maybe remembering that he’s left his front door open, then skying me into oblivion to the delight of whatever sicko organised this.

Who is most likely to be sent off for dissent?

Vish: Probably Jim, actually. Underrated angry man. Don’t really see it until he’s watching football. So presumably being involved in a football match himself would make his rage volcanic.

Who is most likely to play poorly the whole match an d then score a screamer in the last few minutes of the game?

Pete: Obviously me, but that would be shortly followed by me passing to an opposing player and them rounding the keeper. Because I hate myself and I can’t have nice things. If you were playing centre half for a really tough game, who would you want defending by your side?

J: Andy. He looks a lot like tough – tackling journeyman Shaun Derry, and that would surely count for something in that situation. Also he’s a dad so he’s probably used to dealing with emergencies quickly.

Who would have the best goal celebration?

P: Vish. I’ve seen his haversack – it’s full of fireworks, ciggies and bottles of Prime. Who knows what he’s capable of. If you could replace Gianni Infantino – the Head of FIFA – with one Rambler to reform football, who would you pick?

V: Probably Andy. Not just because he’s got morals but he also likes good football so he’ll do things like ban long balls and bring in extra points for nutmegs and rabonas. Luke wouldn’t do that.

Who is most likely to win the Football Ramble FPL this season?

J: Definitely Marcus.

P: Definitely Spelldog. He keeps strange hours being a new father, and who knows what tactical sorcery he’s attempting at 3am.

V: Marcus, I’m afraid. Just loves the game. Reads it well. Talks about it too much. Hates fun. Marcus.

Listen to brand new episodes of the Football Ramble four days a week, wherever you get your podcasts. Because football doesn’t always have to be so serious.