There may not be a more cynical group of supporters than fans of the England national team – the Three Lions.
Adam Bernhams is a native of Hampshire in England, about 30 miles north of Portsmouth, and has been in New York City celebrating his wife’s birthday. The couple attended the musical “Hamilton” last Sunday. On Monday, Bernhams landed at Jones Wood Foundry – an official England supporters club on 76th street in Manhattan – for England’s first match in the 2018 World Cup versus Tunisia.
“This morning I looked on line to see a good place for English people to watch the World Cup, so here I am,” Bernhams said.
Although making the effort to find a proper pub, Bernhams readily admitted that he is a card-carrying member of the England Supporters Pessimist Club.
“Oh God yes,” Bernhams said before kick-off at the Upper East Side establishment. “Every four years, you have expectations. You play well in qualification and then are always horrible in tournaments.”
Bernhams reflected on the previous cycle to provide a succinct example of his country’s failures at the big event.
“I remember very well the last World Cup,” Bernhams said while sipping an ale. “We were eliminated in a week after losing to Italy and Uruguay in the first two games.”
Since winning the World Cup in 1966, England has failed to advance past the quarterfinals – 52 years of frustration for the country that is given credit for inventing the game as we know it today.
“It’s tragic.” Bernhams said.
Bernhams, who watched the 1-1 draw between England and the United States in the 2010 World Cup while visiting the city, endeavored to temper his expectations prior to kick-off in the Group G match.
“As always, they are probably higher than they should be,” Bernhams said. “But it looks good. It’s a young team and (Gary) Southgate seems to instill calm without being overly enthusiastic so we’ll see.”
When Harry Kane opened the scoring in the 11th minute, the pub erupted with chants of “Harry Kane” and “Thank you, Tottenham.” The Three Lions applied considerable pressure with at least three other legitimate scoring threats but none for the record. After Kyle Walker committed a foolish handball in the area, Tunisia leveled the match at 1-1 entering the halftime interval.
Bernhams flashed his Pessimist Club card: “It’s just typical of being an England supporter. We had 10-12 shots and they had one chance. You can see us getting nervous and under pressure. Déjà vu all over again as they say I think.”
The England threats on goal were minimal in the second half and a one-point draw – which would have drawn shouts of disdain from devotees across the globe – seemed inevitable. Kane muted the negative thoughts with a headed winner in stoppage time and England escaped with the vital three points.
Emotions surged in the bar after Kane completed his brace and after the match Bernhams spoke with a less than emphatic look ahead.
“We made hard work of it as always but better than other times we came back with the win,” Bernhams said. “Let’s hope it’s a good omen for the rest of the tournament.”
Did the marginal win provide a positive outlook?
Bernhams replied: “Well, we won so I’m encouraged.”