Joshua Seigal is Highly Commended in Poetry Wales Award 2026

Well then. I can finally announce it. I have been Highly Commended in the 2026 Poetry Wales Award. The poem that garnered this accolade is called 'Football on the Radio', and I am delighted to share it here on my blog. However, before I do so, I should say that an interesting thing happened: by mistake, I submitted an early draft of the poem to the award (which ended up being Highly Commended). However, I have since edited the poem into a final version, which will hopefully appear in a forthcoming collection. So I will present the two poems side by side, to give you a flavour of the editing process, and also because you might have your own opinion as to which version is 'better'. Here, then, is the final, finished version:

Football on the Radio

There he is, my dad, listening to the radio

at the kitchen table. No internet back then,

no mobile phones – I’m lying in my bed

and he’s downstairs following the match,

adjusting the aerial to get the right signal,

moving in and out through static and crackle.

Take it in: he’s pounding his fists, a whoop

and a clap when we score, a colourful curse

when the run of play doesn’t go our way.

And there I am, six years old, downstairs now

on a school night, sitting on his knee, 

listening to the match on that little box

and I can’t quite work out what’s going on

but here we are, and he holds me tight, and 

we’re winning, we’re winning, we’re winning.

........................................................................................

And here is the earlier version, which was judged by the Poetry Wales Award. I think it is not quite as good as the finished version, but hey - why not make up your own minds?

Thank you so much to everyone involved in the Poetry Wales Award, and Poetry Wales magazine (who published me in 2023), for having faith in me and my work!!