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'We don't care about England': Welshman's hilarious call to football phone in

By NationCymru
England's Harry Kane (left) looks dejected after the final whistle in the UEFA Nations League match against Hungary. Picture by Nick Potts / PA Wire. Wales' Gareth Bale celebrates after qualifying for the Qatar World Cup. Picture by David Davies / PA Wire.

Every Welsh sports fan will be familiar with that rather exasperating moment where the discussion about the national team inevitably veers into a discussion about England, especially on the pan-UK media.

One Wales football follower however had enough when the same thing happened after Wales qualified for the World Cup in Qatar, and made his feelings felt in a hilarious call to the BBC's 606 Football podcast.

Identified only as Reuben, the fan shredded the idea that England were a major footballing power or that Wales were particularly fixated on meeting them at the World Cup finals.

Absolutely electric stuff, this! Reuben deserves an all-expenses paid trip to Qatar at this point. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 pic.twitter.com/u1T1orm1pw

— Owen Williams 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇺🇦 (@OwsWills) June 12, 2022

A full transcript of the exchange is below:

Reuben: "I'm feeling fantastic. I get to see, with my sons, Wales play the World Cup finals - something I never thought I'd do.

"My father saw it when he was a 10-year-old boy so I think it's it's a magic moment.

"But we don't care about England. We don't care that England's in our group. England are a small, minor footballing nation that happens to be next door.

"Haven't won anything for years and years and years. So irrelevant. Doesn't matter about England.

"So, immediately going to talk about England when Wales gets through. No interest to us, doesn't matter."

Host Chris Sutton: "Because of the group thing, Reuben."

Reuben: "It doesn't matter. It's just an easy win for us. We could just chalk it up. That's one in the bag."

Chris: "You're not being serious, Reuben."

Reuben: "Yeah, why not? Why not?"

Chris: "Well, how many Welsh players would get in the England team? Honestly, let's you know, let's have a good football debate - how many Welsh players were getting the England team?"

Reuben: "What have England won?"

Chris: "Er, the World Cup."

Reuben: "When?"

Chris: "1966."

Reuben: "Long time ago. How many of the current England players were born when England won the World Cup? None of them. Doesn't matter, does it? Past glories mean nothing. You can only play what's in front of you.

"No one gave us a chance to win tonight.  did."

Chris: "Um, I think a lot of people did. Yeah, no, you sound a tad paranoid. I think a lot of people did give Wales a chance of winning tonight. I thought I thought Wales was slightly fortunate."

Reuben: "We had some lucky moments. I grant you that we had some lucky moments. But you can only score where you can score, you can only play what's in front of you. And that's all that matters at the end of the day."

You can listen to the entire exchange at 48 minutes 30 seconds here:

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14 comments

Jack

Love the sentiment but the fact this article exists kinda disproves it.

Reply
Ianto Ffrainc

Wrong. We don’t care about them. They keep claiming that we do. We are justified defending ourselves against false assertions

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Jack

Let's be honest plenty of Welsh people cared last year when England made it to the final, even though the result was basically irrelevant to Wales future. I agree we don't care about them as much as they think, but a lot of people do care.

Reply

In reply to Jack

Ianto Ffrainc

I’ll have to take your word for it. I’m sure many fans watched as neutrals, many Welsh Italians wanting an Italy win, some Welsh English wanting an English win, some Unionist Tories rooting for their masters and a good number wanting England to lose because they are insufferable enough about 1966 and a win in living memory would make them unbearable. I was torn. I thought the team were decent honourable young men. But the fans are a bit … chippy … for my tastes. The day after I don’t recall anyone in Wales even talking about it. They are just another team. They say “no-one likes us, we don’t care”. The actual truth is “no-one cares about them and they don’t like it”

Reply

In reply to Ianto Ffrainc

Jack

That was largely my experience too. I agree with you that MOST Welsh people don't care. But some people, especially on social media, were passionately supporting Italy that day. Those people definitely cared.

Reply

In reply to Jack

Ianto Ffrainc

Yes fair enough. That did happen too

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Ianto Ffrainc

I loved the fragile ego of the host. Blustering and spluttering because Reuben was a Taffy who didn’t know his place. Supreme arrogance from a fan of a nation which last won something of note three generations ago. We are pleased to have qualified. What England do or don’t do is irrelevant to us except for on one day

Reply
Quornby

As long as we share their media we'll have to put up with this...... Endless England this and England that. They are only just realising that it wasn't just England that won the bloody war.

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Ianto Ffrainc

And come World Cup time, Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys et Al will be full of England shirts and England flags and England mars bars and cokes and walkers crisps. And come the end of the World Cup they will still be there, discounted.

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Gareth

Several years ago Cymru played England, at half time the host asked Ian wright what he thought of the way Cymru had played, he said, I don't care about them, I am here to watch England, same as most fans of Cymru would say about the English team. That's sport for you, particularly when it is as tribal as football is. I doubt any fans of Man U Man City and Chelsea, supported Liverpool in the recent final v Madrid, and they would mostly be English.

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Ianto Ffrainc

As it should be. I think it's only an issue because we are force fed a diet of England exclusively when the football is on. Any rivalry is largely imagined, extrapolated from the egg where there is a rivalry. We are interested in our team, not theirs. We only ever meet every few years or so, so why would we give a monkeys? Might be different if we were regularly competing. I understand somebody suggested a home nations a few years ago, but mighty England saw no benefit to them in facing us minnows. To be honest even their greatest rivalry, with Germany, is a surprise to the Germans, who believe their only rivalry is with the Netherlands. Maybe England can have a rivalry with San Marino or something. In the last 10 years they have faced England more often than we have. Football rivalry with England. No thanks. Don't care

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The Original Mark

Asking how many Welsh players would make the england team is an insult straight away, inferring Wales is an inferior team, and the caller is right, how far back is too far, if 1966 is all they've got, that's not much to go on.

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SundanceKid

It didn't take long for the host to start becoming defensive, did it? Why the obsession from the team, media and supporters that everyone is thinking about them?

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Mark Delaney

If hear football coming home again , will crack me , just hope Wales concentrate on football and not get involved in politics , Harry kane can moan about what rights he thinks Qatar is violating people , BUT as many people in the world are appalled by what we in the West now accept as the norm . Because our kids are taught direct from Marxist handbook , don't expect other God fearing nations to comply . We as in UK, and Wales don't forget , forced our laws onto a lot of nations But now we have done complete 360 in views . In law anyway , don't expect the majority to follow each to their own . . They should be left alone to freely view what they consider right and wrong , no pride flags or any political emblems SHOULD be allowed at WC it's a sporting event with teams from every corner of the world so have the decency to accept their views and laws . CONCENTRATE on football and don't deserving of platform to spout fad of the west Maybe we may have better chance of 100% mind on games , not of some agenda for the left

Reply

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