In this football language post we explain the phrase, ‘thick and fast‘. You can check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access all our previous posts and podcasts. If you have any suggestions or questions then you can contact us at admin@languagecaster.com.
Football Language: Thick and Fast
This phrase has two elements. Let’s start with the first, ‘thick. Thick‘ is a word that has been used to describe a forest with many trees for centuries. A ‘thick‘ forest is a dense grouping of tress, standing close together. Over time, this description was used in other contexts, for example to describe an opposing army: the field was thick with soldiers
The second part of the phrase refers to time and means time is passing quickly or the days are coming fast. So, together in football, the phrase ‘thick and fast‘ means in large numbers and quickly. The phrase is most often used to describe a lot of matches, or fixtures, and means that a team has to play a lot more games than usual in a short period of time – the matches are ‘thick’ and the dates are coming ‘fast’.
You are most likely to hear it when pundits or journalists talk about A managers complaining that their teams have to play too many games in a short time. A typical period is December in England, especially over Christmas and New Year, when the games come thick and fast.
Another phrase to describe this situation of a lot of games in a short period is fixture pile up.
Here is an example from a headline in the Peterborough Telegraph (UK): ‘Peterborough United are coming to the boil at just the right time as matches are coming thick and fast.’
Check out our glossary of footballing phrases here. If you have any suggestions, contact us at admin@languagecaster.com
