Premier League Venue For Beckham’s UNICEF Charity Match

UNICEF at Old Trafford
• Charity match by Beckham
• Famous faces in the rain
• Good cause, good goals

Football might have some skeletons in its closet but there wasn't anyone underfed at Old Trafford on Saturday as stars both old and new took to the pitch with David Beckham's hair to help raise money for UNICEF whilst the Premier League standings are on hold for the International games' break.

It was surprising how jarring it was. As bit of a TV nerd I can pretty much date things by camera angles (which have come and gone from fashion over the years), the picture quality and indeed the names and faces of those appearing. Last weekend however, whilst flipping through the sports channels looking for the Premier League fixtures (I know, I know) I stumbled across something that had me completely at a loss, the pieces of evidence before my eyes conflicting with each other in the most disturbing way.

Seeing the imposing bald headed figure of the world's most famous football referee, Pierluigi Collina, now very much retired, stalking across the pitch I was gambling news from the EPG would tell me it was a re-run of some match from world cup history, not one of the Premier League games at all, but the camera angles were wrong and the picture quality was bang up to date. Then David Beckham jogged by in a hair dresser's sweat band and I was forced to admit I didn't have a clue what was going on.

It transpired I had tuned into see coverage of the UNICEF charity match organized by Beckham between Great Britain & Ireland and the Rest of the World. The teams appeared managed by the jovial Sir Alex Ferguson, and the distinctly damp Carlo Ancelotti, and was littered with famous players from past and present, near and far, who'd all turned up in aid of this fabulous effort to help children around the world. It's a pity the best odds for good weather aren't to be found in November at Old Trafford.

Premier League Stars Past & Present

The weather in Manchester on Saturday was anything but lovely. A steady rain fell on fans, pitch and players but whilst Ancelotti didn't appear overly chuffed with the inclement conditions everyone else was having a whale of a time. Luis Figo led out the Rest of the World, that featured big names like Ronaldinho, Kluivert, and Solskjaer against the home side that included people like Ryan Giggs and Peter Crouch (who has a light touch for a big man*) now playing for Stoke FC owned by the Bet365Coates family.

John Terry's appearance got the sort of reception you'd expect, he's not the most popular of chaps, but there were rousing cheers for David Seaman when he replaced James in goal, and Premier League players like Owen, Yorke, and Cole also received plaudits from the soggy crowd as a good-natured game played out between the sides, the tongue in cheek nature of it all sometimes distinctly obvious. You can always bet on sports in the UK to be a little eccentric at times like these.

It was perhaps, in hindsight, somewhat fortunate the rain had slowed the pitch's pace to the point where it didn't actually possess any, because some of the familiar faces had rather unfamiliar paunches and there was some evidence of tired legs amongst the great and the good who took to that sodden pitch. Paul Scholes definitely appeared able to winter well, and David Seaman looked like Captain Pugwash, but despite that it was as good a game as you'll see appear on the Premier League table this season.

All For A Good Cause In Good Spirits Despite The Rain And Despite Paris

Of course all the events of that weekend were over-shadowed by what happened in Paris on Friday 13th, and this was no different. A moment of silence marked the start of the game, and two of the big names touted to play, Zinedine Zidane and Patrick Vieira, had opted not to travel under the circumstances. “I understood why Zizou took the decision not to play. I totally understand. He is a friend and a very passionate man. Being French that hit him very hard what happened.” Said Beckham, adding; “On behalf of myself, the managers and the players, we send our condolences to those who have lost loved ones.”

Of course he had a loved one of his own to deal with on Saturday as first he was subbed for, and then in the second half actually joined on the pitch, his son Brooklyn Beckham (which gave it the distinct air of some bizarre form of family therapy) although it was perhaps the scoreline that best soothed the wet spectators as the Rest of the World failed to keep out a Paul Scholes goal in the first half and the Michael Owen scored two Premier League goals in the second one quickly answered by Dwight Yorke.

It was Owen that scored the last of the goals that day, but no one really cared what the scoreline was, their minds were on other things, and it is unlikely the thousands of children the money from the match would help really cared who won either. There had been fun and money raised, despite the rain, despite Paris, despite David Beckham's hairstyle which is probably in contravention of UK gambling laws, the laws of nature and any laws of physics you can actually spell, and that was all that mattered in the end.

* This is a mandatory comment upon any mention of Peter Crouch.