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| November 24, 2005 | Thursday | Shawwal 21, 1426 |
England’s ‘Barmy Army’ taste life in different lane
FAISALABAD, Nov 23: England’s ‘Barmy Army’ of travelling cricket fans are used to basking in the evening sunshine with a drink as they discuss the day’s play.
England’s supporters in the West Indies last year regularly outnumbered the home contingent.
Things are rather different, though, for the 40 or so fans who have followed England to Pakistan and are having to adapt to another kind of tour.
“Instead of being in a bar drinking I’m finding myself sipping tea at some stall at 10 in the evening,” said Rob Grace, a 34-year-old lift engineer from Northampton in central England.
“It’s quite boring and is hard at night. That’s the hardest bit of the tour as it’s nice to discuss the cricket over a drink.
“It’s even hard going at the match. We were mobbed by about 60 people who either wanted autographs, photos or a chat,” Grace said. “It’s very hard to concentrate on the game. It’s the hardest tour I’ve done without a doubt.”
Alcohol is officially banned for Muslims in Pakistan and, even for tourists, can be hard to find.
British newspapers reported that the conservative city of Multan, where the first Test was held earlier this month, had only one place selling alcohol and that closed at five p.m.
The Barmy Army’s own website advises members that alcohol is available only in hotels in Faisalabad, where the second Test is underway, and in Lahore, venue for the third Test.
It is not only the lack of alcohol that is proving a challenge to fans used to Cape Town, Barbados, Antigua and Sydney.
The heightened security on the tour is creating an element of fear and preventing opportunities to explore historical or adventurous destinations, fans say.
“You could walk down the streets at night in Bangladesh and there were no problems,” said Ken Wilkins, a 65-year-old Welshman. “Pakistan is far worse. I’m enjoying it but it’s not as much fun.”
Wilkins came to Pakistan on his own and after the seven-week tour, which will cost him about 1,500 pounds ($2,570) using budget hotels, he will move on to India for three months.
The Barmy Army accounts for the majority of England fans on tour. They save up enough money to be able to travel freely in the British winter, following Michael Vaughan’s team who are now ranked the second best Test side in the world.
Grace, who has his own business, said he would not be able to sustain his current lifestyle if he was in regular work with an employer.
Adrian Fox, a 43-year-old restaurateur from Sheffield in northern England, persuaded security officials to allow him to stand by television cameramen to gain a superior aerial view.
“It was because we were constantly being hassled by the Pakistani supporters,” Fox said. “They were very friendly and welcoming but being asked your name and where you are from every two minutes is too much when you’re trying to watch the match.”
Pakistani police subsequently cordoned off a section of the Javed Miandad enclosure to allow England fans to watch the cricket in peace.
Fox said the Barmy Army was breaking up as fans did not like the way it had “sold out” by becoming a tour company.
Breakaway groups such as the “Wavy Navy” have cropped up in protest at the Barmy Army’s ‘ownership’ of England tours.
Wilkins, a retired coalminer, embarked on his first tour, to South Africa, in 1995-96. He calls himself the Army’s oldest member.
“Numbers depend on the grounds we’re playing at but the most I’ve seen was in Cape Town this year when there were about 3,000.”
Some fans accuse the Barmy Army of being exclusive.
“They prefer to stay in their own group and would never come to you to make conversation,” said Alastair Williams, a 28-year-old veterinary surgeon based in Derby, who came out with friends to Multan en route to a friend’s wedding in Karachi.
Their frustration at what they saw as a clique mentality was tempered by the fact that they had spent only about 18 pounds ($31) for 20 match tickets — less than the cost of a single ticket for a Premier League soccer match back home.
Other fans watched for free, courtesy of spare complimentary tickets from players.
Simon Beazley, 27, a London-based stockbroker, travelled out with Williams and said he and his friends enjoyed watching cricket in Antigua last year but were just as happy to embrace the radically different cricket-watching environment of Pakistan.
“I expected from Pakistan pretty much what we have seen: lots of traffic and no real semblance of organisation whatsoever,” Beazley said.
“Given that it’s a Muslim country there doesn’t seem to be any antagonism toward English people and they speak to us about cricket.”
It was nice to go abroad and see “the odd Test match”, Beazley said, but he would not want to do a full tour. “When I go abroad I like to enjoy the local culture and not hang around with thousands of English people.”
Wilkins said he just loved the camaraderie of a cricket tour. He liked to listen to the chanting for a while and then, “I like to go off and get some peace.”—Reuters
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