Iraqis trounce MPs as goodwill tour kicks off

A team of British MPs were beaten but not disgraced by the Iraqi national football side today in the first game of their Goodwill Tour of the UK.

The parliamentarians were beaten 11-0 in the kick-about in Chelsea, south-west London, but their hopes had never been too high against a team ranked 44th in the world by FIFA.

Jim Murphy, Labour MP for Eastwood, said before the game: “When I accepted the challenge to play them, I thought it was a group of Iraqi politicians, not the national side.

“I think the biggest defeat in British football was 36-0, when Arbroath beat Bon Accord, so I’m just hoping it’s not as bad as that.”

Murphy played the whole match, despite collecting the ball in a place he would rather not from close quarters during the second half.

After the game, he said: “They were a fantastic team, and we couldn’t kick the ball or the player today.

“But they’re the first national team we’ve played and we’re after Brazil next.”

Normally the MPs play politicians from other countries or journalists.

Tony Clarke, Labour MP for Northampton South, summed up today’s encounter when he said: “It’s very tough out there. They’re quick, fast and organised, and we’re old, fat and disorganised.”

The MPs’ manager, former Southampton boss Lawrie McMenemy, said before the game: “Some of our players are Scots, and they were rather shocked to learn they were playing a team ranked higher than Scotland.”

Asked to say which of his players were strikers, midfielders or defenders, he smiled: “They’re all defenders.”

The MPs managed to hold the Iraqis at bay for 16 minutes, but the score rose to 6-0 at the end of the 35-minute first half, and the other five goals went in at regular intervals after the break.

The Iraqi team’s manager, German-born Bernd Stange, said: “I don’t even know the score. 11-0, you say? Well, that’s really 1-0, because I told them to imagine the MPs were starting the game 10 goals ahead.

“What really matters is the message that after so many horrible events in Iraq, we can come and play football. That brings a good message to the world.”

The UK Parliamentary FC team has raised money for Truce, an organisation founded by England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson and his partner Nancy Dell’Olio to provide football facilities in war- torn countries. The Iraqi side are also ambassadors for the organisation.

Ms Dell’Olio was present, eye-catching in an ivory suit and white peaked cap, and told reporters: “This shows how football can bring people together. It’s a way to bring peace and harmony around the world.

“During the match, there are no barriers.”

Iraq recently qualified for the Athens Olympics with a 3-1 defeat of Saudi Arabia.

The tour, supported by the FA and FIFA, is designed as a preparation for this summer’s Asian Cup, which kicks off on July 17 in China.

It includes an international friendly with Trinidad and Tobago at West Bromwich Albion’s Hawthorns ground on May 23 and a fixture against an England National Game XI, representing non-league soccer, in Macclesfield on May 27.

A planned match with Bristol Rovers was cancelled on security grounds.