It's back! Stile Cup 2023

Twitter as a platform comes in for a lot of criticism (sometimes rightly so), but for me one of it's greatest outputs is the annual #StileCup - this year #StileCup2023, run by the @LakesStiles Twitter account. The premise is simple and straightforward. Anyone can submit a photo of a stile by the designated closing date (it was earlier this month), and then by some dark magic, photos are randomly assigned to groups of three or four, and posted to Twitter, whereupon anyone who sees the post can vote for their favourite.

This goes on round by round in this knockout form until a winner is decided.

I first entered last year but disappointingly got the boot in round one (I wrote about it here) but have upped my game for this year's competition with a shot of a stile I came across whilst on holiday in Austria in September, which I'm hoping can at least make it to round 2 and improve my record in this competition.

Things can get quite tense, especially towards the latter stages of the competition, where lobbying for votes is an absolutely accepted norm (hint, hint - vote for me - it'll be under my Twitter name "Statto1927").

Interestingly, although it's called the "Stile Cup"and therefore ostensibly about the stile itself, you can certainly genuinely enhance your chances of progressing by ensuring that your photo of the stile also includes a cute dog (two is better) a fabulous landscape or nice sunset - as it seems in many cases people vote for the general content rather than only the actual stile. 

To see the quality of what you might be up against, see this tweet of the 2021 final 4, eventually won by Quintin Lake (bottom left shot). 

As an aside, @QuintinLake is well worth a follow. He's the chap who walked and photographed the entire coastline of Great Britain in his project "The Perimeter" over a period of 5 years.

All in all, the Stile Cup is a fabulous piece of social media fun that enlightens many for a week or so over this period of the year.

I'd urge you to get out and follow @LakeStiles, and me, and vote for my entry when you see it!!!

Thanks

Twitter: @Statto1927 

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/people/simon_hiscocks/ 

Instagram: simon_hiscocks

Wales and the World Cup: Qatar 2022

Wales

Source: The Independent/Getty Images

Well, the dream is over. Wales are out of the World Cup in Qatar after failing to get past the group stage with what can only realistically be described as fairly insipid performances against all three of their opponents - USA, Iran and England. 

A 1-1 draw vs the USA in match 1 was a game of two halves. Wales were awful in the first period and only a Gareth Bale penalty saved blushes as a point  was salvaged in the second half.

with expectations high(wish) that that would be put behind them and they'd beat an Iran side trounced 6-2 by England quickly faded, and it looked like a point would be all they'd get until to (very) late goals by Iran meant defeat and the unlikely scenario of having to beat England by 4 goals to stand any chance of progressing.

Of course that never happened, and it was pretty much all England as our rivals from across the border made easy work in a 3-0 win, and that was that.

So what can we make of it all?

Whilst I am bitterly disappointed (as an Englishman who now considers himself more Welsh than English)  that Wales never really turned up in these finals, you have to accept that even getting to Qatar was an exception achievement for a country of just over 3 million people, the second smallest nation at the World Cup other than Qatar who qualified automatically as the host nation.

For so many supporters of Wales, now known as Y Wal Goch or The Red Wall, getting to a World Cup is somethings they've never known, 1958 being the last time it happened. The success of the team in getting to the semi-final of the 2016 Euros, and then the finals of the 2020 Euros and now the World Cup  finals in Qatar 2020 means the at the other end of the spectrum, younger supporters might feel this is the norm for Welsh football. It's not, and the achievement of team managers over these latter years - the late, great Gary Speed, Chris Coleman, and Rob Page cannot be underestimated. Yes, they've had some exceptional players in their squads. Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey at their peak were sublime, but the key has been getting the rest of the squad, often drawn from Championship or even League 1 level to perform as greater than the sum of the parts.

It's been an exceptional few years for the country's national team. Anyone who has been at a Wales match to experience first hand the amazing support of Y Wal Goch - well, I can vouch for the fact that it sends shivers down your spine, especially when the fans sing the national anthem unaided by music or some screechy would be diva. Trust me, you don't get that anywhere else.

So, on the one hand, the experience of getting to the finals has been incredible. For those that managed to get out to Qatar it must be an experience that will live with them forever.

But that said, and as I set out at the beginning of this post, the disappointment in the performances in our three group games has been palpable. The team didn't perform anywhere near their best, collectively or individually in any of the group games, and with one goal (from the spot) in those matches we didn't deserve anything either. Several of those players are now probably done in their careers in a red shirt. Neither Gareth Bale or Aaron Ramsey looked fit or had any real impact in any of the games (Bale's penalty aside). Joe Allen was wrapped in cotton wool until the England game but couldn't influence the game unduly. Those three have been outstanding servants for Wales, but it wouldn't surprise me if we don't see them in a Wales shirt in any significant or meaningful way again. 

But there are some excellent and exciting players coming through. Ethan Ampadu has significant tournament experience now even as a youngster. The likes of Brennan Johnson and Dan James who come in for a lot of stick are pacy and attack minded. Kieffer Moore is a great front man. Neco Williams has bags of potential and quality. And it was really pleasing to see two Cardiff City players in the World Cup squad - Ruben Colwill and Mark Harris, with Colwill even getting some minutes on the pitch in the England game. There's no time to stop and think with the Euro qualifiers just round the corner starting in March, but there's still room for optimism.

Much as it will incense my Welsh pals, I still have a soft spot for England, and I'd like to see them do well,  but I'd much rather have seen Wales do well and get out of the group stages, even at England's expense

Let's hope that Wales can keep this great run of qualifying for the finals of major tournaments going.

Bring on the Euros!

Twitter: @Statto1927 

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/people/simon_hiscocks/ 

Instagram: simon_hiscocks