Your Game in Manchester

Carmine has been writing poetry for years

Aspiring poet Carmine Grimshaw has penned a poem in honour of Your Game's visit to Manchester.

Grimshaw is a part-time worker with Manchester City Council, leading a project to educate licensees on how to prevent selling alcohol to young people.

"It started off as a joke really," the 45-year-old said of "'Your Game is Their Game'.

"The lads at Positive Futures were ribbing me about writing poetry when Gareth at Your Game said 'go on then, write us a poem'.

"It took me at least two hours, but it came off the top of my head. I'm pretty happy with it."

"Your Game is Their Game" Carmine Grimshaw Urban Poet

Your Game to inspire you,
Chasing your goals,
Replacing negative aspects,
With ventures so bold.

A ball for a bullet,
A blade made of grass,
Or kerbstones made from needles,
And broken glass?

A free-kick that's given
You don't need to take,
It doesn't have a value,
Till it's given away.

A fix when you score,
Your team's winning goal,
A scratch on your record, adding some spin,
Mixing of people, Your Game's pulling them in.

Commentate; they'll all listen,
Young ones growing old,
Your Game becomes Their Game,
It's the way that it goes.

Once we were the future,
Soon we'll be the past,
Through Your Game we'll make changes,
And maybe they'll last.

Your Game is a partnership between the BBC and the Football Foundation, with support from Barclays Spaces for Sports.