Published: 3 January, 2013

IN these tough times – an era when we’re repeatedly told by important people there’s no public money for anything apart from London’s New Year’s Eve exploding money fireworks – anybody with a job is happy just to have a job. Aren’t they?

This job isn’t so well paid. The supposed trade-off is that journalists have an ‘interesting’ job, not staring at spreadsheets all day or doing monotonous tasks day in day out. Take me, I met Philippa Forrester on a job once, a few years ago now. She was helping to promote Camden Council’s recycling service. So ha –how many of you big buck earners in the City, with your suits and ties, and your pastrami deli sandwiches at lunchtime, and your trophy blondes, have met Philippa Forrester as part of your job? None of you! And she wore tight trousers and asked me how hard it is to learn shorthand. Despite these obvious perks, local journalism won’t make you rich. Nor will most of the jobs people reading this do. Nobody I know has got any dough.

So I can’t really understand how the Arsenal travelling support, without painful bank loans, pay for all their travel fares and match tickets every single week.

They must be going without lunch, and given that you’d expect a better reward from the players they follow. They must feel swizzed.
Against Southampton, Arsene Wenger – finally, finally – said something negative about his players when they lucked a 1-1 draw against one of the league’s poorest sides.

“The players lacked desire.”

He’s right, and he should be worried that his team’s fans will start “lacking desire” too soon – the desire to keep parting with their hard-earned dosh for away games every fortnight.

Richard osley

SO, it looks as though Thierry Henry won’t perform his Second Coming at the Emirates this January after all.

“He’s going away somewhere,” said Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger on Tuesday.  “I saw him buying a thermal jock strap in Aldi. I think he mentioned Bradford.”

OK, I made that last bit up. But Arsene cryptically reckons Tezza is going “away somewhere” and why not to the frozen north and a tilt at Capital One Cup glory?  

Be a bit more exciting than joining up with Arsenal, where the only thrill comes from the sight of Wenger squirming on the bench while trying to unzip his ever-expanding coat.

And Tezza likes playing against the lower leagues – just look at how he bounced around and beat his chest after scoring against Championship side Leeds in the FA Cup last year.

 I don’t think I’ve seen a man look more excited or relieved. Apart from last Saturday when Arsene finally got the zip on his coat to open, of course.
Arsenal are bound to miss him though. No one gets the crowd going at the New Library more than Henry when he warms up.
Other than Gunnersaurus, that is.

Thankfully, us Tottenham supporters don’t need a pair of old dinosaurs to get us going at the Lane.  

And we won’t be wallowing in the past in our FA Cup match against Coventry on Saturday.

We’ll be looking to the future, which after a festive season, short on Lady Luck but high on quality, is looking bright.

Cathetine Etoe