Old enemies

by Philip Patrick & Chris Cavey

Activity 1
Decide if the sentences are true (T) or false (F) 1 The United Kingdom and England are the same place. ________ 2 England against Scotland was the worlds first international football match. ________ 3 England and Scotland played against each other every year up to the 1980s. ________ 4 Scotland fans hope that England win their matches. ________ 5 The enmity between the teams is mostly just for fun. ________

Activity 2
Complete this list of expressions from the text. 1 a picture He was ___________ to be complimented on his 2 is Scottish. Hed ____________ to be compared to famous 3 For lots of people its ________ to get confused: Britain, 4 tournaments but its_________ to say that none of them 5 however, the ______________ to defeat their bigger 6 sets of supporters __________ to sing songs and laugh
Mat Wright

Activity 3
the United Kingdom has its own national football team. England has the biggest population and has historically had the most successful team. Their biggest achievement was winning the World Cup in 1966. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have all qualied for World Cup tournaments but its fair to say that none of them has been as successful as England. They have always enjoyed, however, the opportunity to defeat their bigger neighbour. England rst played football against Scotland in 1870 (a 0-0 draw) and the game quickly became an annual event. At that time, England and Scotland were the only two national teams playing football so the winners could consider themselves world champions. Over the years there were some great games. Scotlands 5-1 win in 1929 was their biggest ever victory against England. Englands 9-1 victory in 1961 was the Scottish goalkeepers last ever match for his country and he later emigrated to Australia. Annual matches between Scotland and England came to an end in the 1980s but the rivalry between the fans has continued. Both sets of supporters like to sing songs and laugh at the other team when they have a bad result. Some Scots fans even dressed up as cowboys before Englands game with the U.S.A. For some, the dislike of the other team is serious but for most it is just a bit of fun. According to a survey taken before the 2010 World Cup only 24% of Scots would support Englands opponents, 24% would actually support England (albeit quietly I suspect) and 38% would remain neutral. So the enmity may not be as widespread as it sometimes appears but be careful not to ask a Scot if England and Scotland are the same place!
Look again at the answers to Activity 2. Can you identify 3 adjectives, 2 verbs and 1 noun that can be followed by an infinitive with to?

England and Scotland may be parts of the same country but when it comes to sport, they dont always see eye to eye.
A few years ago, I played a friendly game of football with my friend and colleague, Duncan, and some Japanese students. Duncan is a pretty good footballer and he played very well and scored a great goal. After the match, two of his Japanese team-mates congratulated him. Great goal Duncan, one of them said. We love your English style of play just like David Beckham or Wayne Rooney. Duncans face was a picture. He was happy to be complimented on his football ability but not so happy to be complimented on his English style of play or compared to English footballers. Duncan, you see, is Scottish. Hed prefer to be compared to famous Scottish players like Kenny Dalglish or Denis Law and not to players for the team Scotland love to beat England! For lots of people, its easy to get confused: Britain, Great Britain, the United Kingdom, England, Scotland, . Are they all the same place? Ask this question to a Scottish football fan like Duncan and youll get a short answer. No! The United Kingdom (UK) consists of 4 countries England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. but by a long way the largest and most powerful is England and the English are sometimes accused of acting in a superior way. Sport is a chance for the other UK countries to show their own identity and get some revenge on the English. Although a joint Great Britain team competes in most Olympics sports, each of the four nations in

Activity 4
Complete the sentences with words from the box. defeat draw scored goalkeeper victory

1 Duncan__________ a great goal. 2 The match ended as a 0-0 __________ 3 The fans celebrated the 3-0 __________ 4 The__________ couldnt stop any of the goals going in and his team suffered a 9-1 _________

Word of the week

Duncans face was a picture. How do you think Duncan looked? We use this expression when someone looks surprised or shocked.

Activity 3 Adjectives: happy easy fair

British Council 2010

Activity 2 1 happy 2 prefer 3 easy 4 fair 5 oportunity 6 like Activity 1 1F 2T 3T 4F 5T

Answers

Verbs: prefer like Nouns: oppotunity

Activity 4 1 Duncan scored a great goal 2 The match ended as a 0-0 draw 3 The fans celebrated the 3-0 victory 4 The goalkeeper couldnt stop any of the goals going in and his team suffered a 9-1 defeat