So, it occurred to me that Matthew has been publishing exemplar (and exemplary) poems by each of the poets that are appearing at Rogue Strands on the 28th November—have I mentioned that before?—but a bit like being the photographer who never gets to be in front of the camera, he’s not going to write about himself.
Oh yes, donations here please
Therefore, I’m taking it upon myself to write a Rogue Strands-style intro for him.
I’ve been a fan of Matthew’s work since I stumbled across it on the Twitters at least four years ago. I was lucky enough to snap up the last copies of his two HappenStance pamphlets, Tasting Notes and Inventing Truth and to meet him (and his lovely wife, Marina) when they were over in London to launch his excellent first collection, The Knives of Villalejo. That meeting, and the pints that followed have basically led to this. I knew I should have stuck to water that evening!!!
Only joking…*
I’ve been lucky enough to see some of the poems Matthew is working on towards his next collection and I’m looking forward to seeing where that goes. While he has always had a keen eye for developing small details about the immediate world into something that resonates at a much wider level (see almost any page in Knives for more details), he’s certainly moving on in terms of his work. Where Knives dealt a lot with family, his new work is building on different memories and truths.
Sadly, his beloved Aldershot FC didn’t manage the kind of win that leads to an eruption yesterday; a six-nil tonking at the hands of Dagenham & Redbridge saw to that, but the poem below does speak of one of life’s greatest joys – whatever the capacity of your club’s ground.
At the Far Post
Forget your novels, plays or films,
the only remaining moment
I can suspend my disbelief
is an overcast Saturday
in March, stood among curses, coughs
and scarves on a crumbling terrace,
as our winger hoists a deep cross,
our striker buries his header
and all of us erupt.
This poem was first published at Wild Court
*Or am I?
The other poet’s pages on Rogue Strands are here
Ramona Herdman
Katy Evans-Bush
Rory Waterman
Rishi Dastidar
Robin Houghton
Some knobhead
Wear The Fox Hat 