Christmas is coming, the John Lewis advert’s out, the shops are full of Christmas treats, the traditional Christmas World Cup is about to start. It comes around quickly though, doesn’t it? It only feels like a week ago it was the last Christmas Day.

Sorry, not Christmas Day, Military Day, it only feels like a week ago we were recognising Military Day. Something I’d put down to the fact that it was only a week ago we were recognising Military Day. 

I don’t mind themed days, in fact I think we should do more of them, a few years ago we had Retro Day, which was great. There was the hugely successful Family Away Day at Stevenage in our promotion season. And who could forget Dwight Tiendelli Day, when we had to turn up late and sit out of position? Or Ivo Pekalski Day when we didn’t have to turn up at all?

Military Day has endured and evolved; back in 2014 they parked a tank in one of the corners of the pitch and pointed it menacingly at, the then under pressure, Michael Appleton. It really showed the playful side of military hardware. 

Yesterday was something else, there were so many vehicles on display you’d be forgiven for thinking that Vladimir Putin had seriously overshot his withdrawal from Kherson. There was a ‘down the barrel’ photo of a gun, which gave you a sense of what it’d be like being shot in the face. Then there was a military band, who were being celebrated, but not quite enough to allow them on the actual pitch. There was some marching, the ball being presented to the referee by a soldier, Union Jacks on the pitch and in the stands, and then the national anthem. The actual national anthem.

But what is the point of Military Day? An opportunity to recognise and reward the military and their family for the difficult job they do? A recruitment exercise? A brand builder for the military services? For us as a club? An expression of national identity? 

And why did we have it just a week after Remembrance Sunday? Which also recognises the value of our armed forces, but also, lest us not forget, reminds us of the futility of war, the people it kills, and that war is, when it comes down to it, an expression of the ultimate failure of a civil society. Those who can’t collaborate and compromise have to fight. Or worse, they send others to fight and die on their behalf.

Last week’s Remembrance Sunday ceremony against Port Vale was similarly heavy-handed, there were poppies on shirts, arm bands, wreaths laid, a poem read, the last post played, as well as the minute’s silence. All before a game of football broke out.

Each additional bit seems to lose sight of its original purpose, there’s a point where it becomes less of a reminder of the impact of war and more of a spectacle. There are those who criticise players for taking the knee as a protest against racism. The view is that it’s a performance more than it is a meaningful expression of an important issue. I happen to think that it’s visible and proportionate, a rare opportunity to show you support the fight against racism. The only other time you get to do that is when you’re just not being a racist.

In that sense, it’s like a minute’s silence – it doesn’t take long, it’s not hard to do, it shows unity, it harms nobody, and it gives you a moment to think. But, can you imagine if the match ball was delivered by a person of colour or we had to sing a song before the game about it? Or there were trucks outside demonstrating Critical Race Theory? I mean, I haven’t really thought through what BLM Day might look like, but you might argue, and with some justification, that there is a point where such a thing would become overbearing and lose sight of its original purpose.  

There is much that is good about the people in the military, we should welcome them into the Oxford United community. Offer their families free or discounted tickets, let their kids meet the players or do the guard of honour, give them a special day where they’re treated well. I like a marching band, it’s more entertaining than Republica’s ‘Ready to Go’, so let’s do more of that, but let them on the pitch.

But let’s not drift into the idea that we’re celebrating why the military exist or that it shows off the best of us. If there’s a big lesson for the next generation, then it must be that we should never steer ourselves into a position where we need to use a 1500kg missile or a 60-tonne tank to resolve an issue.

Once we’re celebrating this stuff, we’re into the realms of nationalism, the idea that the best thing about us is our ability to kill other people. If you want to see that in action – where military might is equated to national strength – just look at Russia, China and North Korea. If you want to see the impact it has on people, look into the haunted eyes of Volodymyr Zelenskyy. That is not a man who is celebrating military strength.

As a club, so much effort is put into Military Day, but where is NHS Day? Teacher Day? International Day? Social Care Day? Farmers Day? LGBT Day? Family Day? University Day? Emergency Services Day? Old People Day? Science Day? Women’s Sport Day? Women’s Anything Day? And if you’re feeling that’s all a bit ‘woke’ then let’s go for ‘White middle-aged man day’ or as I like to call it – South Stand Upper Every Single Game Day. 

There are lots of great things about the city in particular and the country more generally, plenty of people who have difficult lives, who can be hard to reach and do important things with little recognition. In short, there’s lots to celebrate and plenty to recognise including and beyond our military capability. Let’s not forget the role the military play, but also let’s use the platform the club has to promote what we want our future to be, which is something that rarely involves a war.