GASTON D. (poem) - Krešimir Bagić - Croatia

Gaston D.

Un Marseillais, monsieur Brun,
s'il voit chapeau melon sur le trottoir,
il ne peut se retenir, il shoute.
Marcel Pagnol

O Toulousea do Aix-en-Provincea
nema veće legende od Gastona D.
Ta brkata dobričina s istočnog sjedenja,
krezubi pjetlić koji vonja na 'Gitanes'
(kako bi rekla njegova Mary-Laurence),
četrdeset godina oštri zube za OM.

1958. Gaston D. je prvi put došao na Vélodrome
i vidio oproštajni 169. gol Gunnara Anderssona.
"Ovo je mjesto na kojemu ću odsad rasti",
pomislio je Gaston pa poviknuo: "Allez OM!"
1971. Gaston D. je probudio čitavu tribinu:
"Gospodo, zovite policiju!
Magnusson nabacuje loptu prema Skoblaru!"
Trenutak poslije učinio je nagli trzaj glavom
i stadion je eksplodirao.

1991. Gaston D. je, uz balote i pastis,
kreirao jednu od provansalskih poslovica:
"Chris Waddle je živi dokaz da se nogomet
rodio u Engleskoj a razvio u Marseilleu."

1998. Gaston D. se pažljivo pogledao u zrcalo,
zadovoljno si namignuo, uzeo papirić i zapisao:
                            Barthez
Desailly     Boli     Blanc     Mozer
        Cezar                         Deschamps
                        Waddle
    Skoblar         JPP             Bokšić

Od Toulousea do Aix-en-Provincea
nema veće legende od Gastona D.
Ta brkata dobričina s istočnog sjedenja,
krezubi pjetlić koji vonja na 'Gitanes'
(kako bi rekla njegova Mary-Laurence),
četrdeset godina oštri zube za OM.

Ljudi se oko njega tiskaju kao oko proroka.
Priča se da su ga za savjet tražili Hidalgo,
Beckenbauer i Courbis. I da je svima uzvratio:
"Moje riječi vrijede samo na tribinama.
Vratite se na travnjak i pokušajte ih odande čuti."

Gaston D.

Un Marcellais, monsieur Brun,
s'il voit chapeau melon sur le trottoir,
il ne peut pas se retenir, il shoute.
Marcel Pagnol

You’ll not find anyone, between Toulouse and Aix,
who’s more of a legend than Gaston D.
A nice guy with a ’tache from the east-side seats,
a gap-tooth bantam reeking of Gitanes
(like his Mary-Laurence would say)
revving up for OM forty years.

In 1958 his first time at the Vélodrome,
Gastom D. and saw Gunnar Andersson's farewell goal, number 169.
“Here I am and here I’ll stay,”
Gaston thought, and yelled “Allez OM!”
In 1971 Gaston D. woke up the whole stand:
“Somebody call the police!
Magnusson’s thrown the ball to Skoblar!”
Next thing, a quick jerk of the head
and the crowd went wild.

1991. Over a pastis and a game of boules
Gaston D. came up with a Provencal proverb.
“Chris Waddle is the living proof that football
was born in England but grew up in Marseille.”

1998. Gaston D. scrutinised the mirror,
smirked, picked up a scrap of paper and wrote:
                    Barthez
Deasailly Boli         Blanc Mozer
        Cezar                 Deschamps
                    Waddle
    Skoblar     JPP         Bokšić

You’ll not find anyone, between Toulouse and Aix,
who’s more of a legend than Gaston D.
A nice guy with a ’tache from the seats on the east,
a gaptooth bantam reeking of Gitanes
(like his Mary-Laurence would say)
revving up for OM forty years.

People crowd about him as though he were a prophet.
They say Hidalgo, Beckenbauer and Courbis
asked his advice. And he told them all:
“What I say only counts in the stands.
Get back on the pitch and try to hear from there.”