High school hero: Michael Thatcher
Posted on 12/23/2007 1:56:41 PM PST by Stoat
High school hero: Michael Thatcher
Michael Thatcher is continuing to foster Baroness Thatcher's special relationship with the U.S. - by helping his high school American football team into the Texas state finals.
The 18-year-old took a brilliant diving catch from a looping 48-yard pass in front of 10,000 fans last week.
The dramatic moment was broadcast live on TV and one excited commentator exclaimed: "Wow! Can the guy run, can he catch, can he do everything?"
Margaret Thatcher, then Prime Minister, announced Michael's birth in 1989 by declaring outside 10 Downing Street: "We have become a grandmother."
The son of Sir Mark Thatcher and Diane Burgdorf, the Texan-born daughter of a wealthy U.S. car dealer, he spent most of his childhood in South Africa where he enjoyed cricket and hockey.
He started playing American football - which is nicknamed gridiron - three years ago when he moved to Dallas with his mother after his father was charged in South Africa with supporting a bungled coup in Equatorial Guinea.
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Debut: Baby Michael with his parent and grandmother
He admitted to being in "a state of shock" about his catch.
"I'm the kind of guy who gets pretty nervous coming out," he said.
"But as soon as we start running the ball, I'll come into a rhythm and I'm sure the rest of the team is the same way."
Randy Allen, coach of the Scots, the Highland Park high school team in Dallas, praised the teenager's "hard work, dedication and discipline".
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In action: Michael shows off his skill on the pitch
At 6ft 1in and weighing 170lb, Michael is still a little small for his position of running back, but is training to increase his size.
Mr Allen said: "He could be one of the best running backs in the state."
Although Lady Thatcher, 82, appears to have little interest in sport, her late husband, Denis, was a rugby referee and a keen golfer. Michael's parents divorced after nearly 20 years of marriage in April.
His father is only able to see Michael and his 14-year-old sister, Amanda, when they travel abroad because U.S. immigration authorities barred him from entering the country after he pleaded guilty over his role in the Equatorial Guinea affair.
He was fined £265,000 and given a four-year suspended prison sentence.
What I liked is how they captioned the picture of his play on the “pitch”. Most Americans would go . . .”Huh? What the hell is a pitch?” (And yes, I know they mean field.)
Cool! Cool cool!
agree
So the Brit whose gram is in the Lords is a star for the Texan Scots.
Only in America.
Folks who aren't American. Turns out, the name "football" was already taken.
"Oy! I have mercenaries on speed dial!"
Are you, by any chance, from Pennsylvania or Missouri? I know it's an odd question, but that's a dialect thing that has bugged me for a while.
Ahem-—they were runner up to my home town team—Lake Travis High School. I love it!!!
This young man will someday be Sir Michael Thatcher, when he inherits his father’s baronetcy.
It’s ironic that his team is named the Scots, though. The Scots hated his grandmother.
Why can’t he get a Visa?
Good looking kid I hope he is good enough for College and PRO
If I were President, I'd tell the appropriate bureaucrat, "Give him a visa or be checking passports in Nome, Alaska."
Close. Western Maryland (the somewhat civilized part). Very close to PA, W-VA, and VA. The only part of our dialect that I find wierd is that we pronounce water as wooder. Other than that, it’s Ya’ll instead of Yinz.(no disrespect to STILLER fans intended because this is STILLER country also.)
He's got many features of her face.
Nearly everyone. Gridiron most often refers to the field itself but can also used to refer to the game.
The usage "needs replaced" was what got my attention. As opposed to "needs to be replaced" or "needs replacing." I've known a few people who phrased things that way, and most were from western PA, a few from Missouri. It's an intriguing linguistic mystery to me.
Another note: Pennsylvania seems to be split between Stiller country and Iggles country. Are they allergic to the letter E?
Funny. I was wondering whether he was good enough for 10 Downing St.
Eventually, of course.
Because he (Michael's father, Maggie's son) pleaded guilty to engineering a coup in Equatorial Guinea. He was busted sponsoring a planeload of mercenaries and weapons.
It's possible that he took a guilty plea and deportation rather than face a stacked court. That's a pretty credible position to take. But nonetheless, he has a conviction on his record for trying to overthrow a government, and if we're going to even pretend to enforce any kind of border control, that's a big honkin' red flag.
That of course he was born in the UK according to article he was I think they have same law we have here in the US only Brit born citizens
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