1860: I know that was then but it could be againfield
| I know that was then but it could be againfield |
 Made by: Manyhills |
Explanation[edit | edit source]
This strip compiles panels from, as the author's notes state, the original Garfield strips that ran on a day that the England men's national football team were eliminated from a World Cup or European Championship tournament between Garfield's debut and the publishing of this strip, then sets the chosen panels to music. Only World Cups and European Championships where England actually qualified for the final tournament are included; if the England team did not qualify for a tournament, no panel for that competition is included. This strip was fast-tracked for publishing; it was published only two days after England's elimination from World Cup 2014.
A note in the strip credits revealing England failed to qualify for World Cup 1978 is noteworthy in that Garfield began during that very World Cup (the tournament was held between June 1 and June 25 that year; Garfield debuted on June 19); England would have needed to not only qualify for that tournament (their failure to do so was assured on 1977-12-03) but make the second round and not have been mathematically eliminated from that round's groups by the third matchday in order for a 1978 panel to have qualified for this remix.
The other specified qualification failures were Euro 1984 (failed on 1983-11-16), World Cup 1994 (failed on 1993-11-17), and Euro 2008 (failed on 2007-11-21). All three of these failures notably saw none of the four countries comprising the United Kingdom qualify for the final tournament--none of Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland qualified for any of those three competitions either (this quality is not true for World Cup 1978, in which Scotland qualified).
England did indeed qualify for Euro 2016, and indeed every European Championship and World Cup to date since this strip was published, and not won any of them, the closest being a runner-up finish at Euro 2020 on penalties (held the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic), the next closest being a runner-up finish at Euro 2024 in regulation. To date, England's tale of woe has added on these dates: 2016-06-27, 2018-07-11, 2021-07-11 (to Italy in the final on penalties), 2022-12-10, 2024-07-14 (to Spain in the final).
The author writes:[edit | edit source]
This strip includes one panel from every Garfield corresponding to a date the England men's national football team was eliminated from a major tournament since Garfield debuted in 1978. The lyrics are from one of the four England national squad songs to have topped the UK charts, "Three Lions" by Baddiel, Skinner & the Lightning Seeds (originally written for Euro '96), which has re-entered the Top 30 every World Cup since. The connoisseur's choice, I believe, is "World in Motion" by Greatest Band Ever New Order.
Perhaps we'll qualify for Euro 2016. Fifty years of hurt...
Original strips: (no qualification World Cup 1978), 1980-06-15, 1982-07-05, (no qualification Euro 1984), 1986-06-22, 1988-06-15, 1990-07-04 (to Germany in the semis on penalties), 1992-06-17, (no qualification World Cup 1994), 1996-06-26 (to Germany in the semis on penalties), 1998-06-30, 2000-06-20, 2002-06-21, 2004-06-24, 2006-07-01, (no qualification Euro 2008), 2010-06-27, 2012-06-24, 2014-06-20.
Transcript[edit | edit source]
Garfield: Everyone seems to know the score
Newspaper: ENGLAND UTTERLY USELESS
TV: They've seen it all before
Jon: They just know... they're so sure...
That England's gonna throw it away
Odie: Pffffft
Gonne blow it away
Jon: But I know they can play!
Garfield: Cos I remember
Jon: Three lions on a shirt, Jules Rimet still gleaming
Garfield: Thirty years of hurt never stopped me dreaming
Jon: Joke joke joke joke
Garfield: So many jokes
Garfield: So many sneers
Garfield: But all those oh-so-nears wear you down through the years
But I still see
Garfield: That tackle by Moore
Garfield: And when Lineker scored
Bobby belting the ball
{SFX: SWISH!}
And Nobby dancing
Garfield: Three lions on a shirt, Jules Rimet still gleaming, thirty years of hurt never stopped me dreaming...
