My football bag was blue.
It was often searched
in case there was a bomb in it
in lieu of boots.
Or an Armalite in lieu of togs,
or gelignite in lieu of Brut,
or the names of likely targets
on some incriminating list
in lieu of Nualas and Siobháns
who might agree,
in lieu of nothing else to do,
to kissing at The Ritz.

John Kelly's poetry has appeared in Ireland and abroad in several magazines and anthologies. His novel From Out of the City was shortlisted for the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards in 2014