RATHBONE: Does sport really warrant our reverence?

And a poet!

I too felt there were two themes running through this exactly as you mention YCBS. 1) Unsure if being a professional sportsman is worth it, due to the disadvantages. 2) Unsure of the signficance of sport in general. To me they are questions with no right or wrong answers, just different opinions depending on the individual, which is fine. The article has a real existential bent, and we all know how hard those questions are to answer ;) To be fair though, I didn't see it as Clyde being negative or complaining. I saw it merely as presenting a less heard side of the equation. I can only say "how long is a piece of string?"

All that tedious professionalism really does make for better players, and as such, better entertainment though. The question is - is there any full time industry that doesn't become tedious? Quite few where you can make as much money as professional sport… No question of the sacrifices involved, but the perks are pretty high.

A man searching for the soul in a business searching for the money. You should have been an artist Clyde ;)

"I believe those thugs/hooligans/ultras merely use sport as their medium of choice." Well, the problem is when sports authorities don't combat hooligamism. I live in Uruguay and the authorities of football and basketball don't really tackle the problem. I do believe that professional sportspeople should be role models. Diego Forlán, Rafael Nadal and Hélio Castroneves are good examples of this.

Adminsitrators follow what people want. Writers change what peole want. Therefore, as a writer he can change things.

NCAA student-players, especiall in football and basketball, are as elite athletes as professionals. Their lives are hardly amateur., they live to play sports, even if they don't get a salary

Clyde, as usual you have raised some important issues that deserve consideration. I think there are three areas that could be considered in detail: 1. The welfare of players, 2. The welfare of former players, and 3. The positives and negatives of sport in general. Having been a brumbies supporter for many years I have been fortunate to speak to you on numerous occasions at various Brumbies supporter functions, and these very topics would often feature in the conversations: (sorry for the length - hope the moderators don't chop it) 1. Player Welfare - Player burnout is a topic that could take up it's own Roar article so I'll leave that one for another time. However I think player welfare should be based on one overriding principal - anything that will negatively impact the player later in their post-playing days is unacceptable. Of course the biggest elephant in the room on this one is concussion injuries. A good example is the George North concussion last weekend. It should be set in stone by now that if a player appears to have been knocked unconscious - even if it is only briefly - they should be immediately taken from the field, not pending review but for the rest of the game. Then not allowed to resume playing until medically assessed to be fit to play. I still feel that the Swedish study I emailed to you a while back shows the most promise in this regard as it appears to be the only test that potentially provides a clearly measureable baseline to assess brain injury. http://sahlgrenska.gu.se/english/news_and_events/news/News_Detail/blood-test-identifies-brain-damage-from-concussion-in-ice-hockey.cid1210243 2. The welfare of former players - In the amateur era, players had to have jobs and qualifications outside of their sport. Nowadays the players that worry me the most are those middle of the road players that never quite make it to the highest level. They may put in the same hours and have the same time constraints but never had the pay packets to get their finances in order before their playing days were over. The problem is made worse by the fact that players appear to be scouted at lower and lower ages. It's a difficult problem and I really don't know the answer. No individual team would cut short the training time available to them to allow for university or TAFE courses. The only solution I can think of would have to be a competition-wide mandated allocation of time each week - away from training - for 'player development'. 3. The positives and negatives of sport in general - While there are negatives to sport (the recent deaths in Egypt are a good example) I don't think the more ugly outbreaks of violent tribalism are a result of the sport per se. I believe those thugs/hooligans/ultras merely use sport as their medium of choice. There are more than enough violent gangs around who have no affiliation at all to sport to suggest this is true. Moreover there are numerous studies that show sport can reduce crime, violence and antisocial behaviour. One example is from the AIC - Crime prevention through sport and physical activity (just google ISBN 0 642 24183). The one aspect that I don't think gets enough attention is the undervalued notion of 'sportsmanship'. I have never in all my playing years verbally insulted an opposing player to try and 'get under their skin'. I can't understand sledging. I've seen senior cricket players say that it's 'part of the game'. Well if that is the case then how can you let your kids play it and look yourself in the mirror? Call me old fashioned, but although I've groaned out loud at a referee decision I've disagreed with, I've never hurled abuse their way. I've never been a referee - I don't have the attention span. There is a shortage of referees across most sports, so if someone doesn't think they're doing a good enough job, they can grab an application form and 'put up or shut up'. I remember at one function in the Brumbies club house a couple of years ago we were discussing a recent off-field controversy involving a player I won't name here. From memory I believe I summed up my opinion as - 'If you're wearing the national jersey you're not just representing Australia on the scoreboard'. I still stand by that statement. Sportspersons are high profile role-models for better or for worse, and most professional competitions have codes of conduct that reflect just that. Overall I'd have to say that despite the negatives, sport is - on balance - clearly a positive. It certainly has been for me. I've made friendships through playing, have great memories of times spent with my late father going to games together, and always enjoyed attending games when I've travelled - especially when sitting amongst opposition supporters who have always shown me nothing but hospitality - particularly post match. Thanks again for the article and hopefully you'll drop in to a pre-game brumbies function sometime this year.

We could look at the model used for American Football whereby players in the NFL are fully professional while just one tier below at the NCAA level players are strictly amateur. If that was the case and we enforced an amateur level - what level should it be? Club? National Rugby Championship?

Clyde, thank you, a thoughtful piece, as always. Reverence is strong word. I know you used it deliberately. As a secularist myself, I can only say that, to the extent that sport has replaced religion as the opiate of the masses, it has my blessing. Revere away. Can't remember too many wars being fought over it. The question of what otherwise 'really counts' is also begged. For mine, sport (playing AND watching it) is a welcome distraction and useful release from things that 'really count', whether I wish them to or not. Thanks again.

Thats because you confused the point Clyde but I am in the minority and others seem to have enjoyed it. I just think you are unsure of the question you want to ask. Are you stating that the life of a pro athlete is hard and YOU are unsure if you think it was worth it or are you questioning the significance of sport in the Australian culture?

I guess that's something that any individual can answer for themselves. I'm a sports nut - that's something I can justify. Sport is like watching a great drama series, except it's real, not scripted. I don't watch scripted drama, it generally bores me. I watch sport instead. The superbowl or the big bash final are recent examples of things you see on a sporting field that you just can't see anywhere else. Not unless it's staged anyway. That's the appeal of sport worldwide. Why do people follow certain teams? That I can't explain. Why do people care that a group of people win over another group of people purely based on the colour of their shirts? I do, and the rational part of my brain can't work out why. It's a bit like religion I guess. Why do people believe in some religions over others? Got me stuffed. But it's life and death for some people.

Read this cerebral article, but not all the responses, and noticed a distinct lack of acknowledgement that professional sport offers many 'non-cerebral' types their one shot in life to escape from a repeating world of poverty and miserableness !

What a silly question. I dont agree with everyone here and I didnt like the article. It seems confused, negative and offers nothing but complaint about having to work to reach the top, meeting people you dont like along the way and not enjoying every aspect, as if it was more a burden than a positive situation. You confuse sport and the life of an elite athlete at the top level, they are not the same thing. You complain about how boring and tedious it could be. Sheeesh, cry me a river, I think you would be in for a shock if you did some other peoples job for a living, jobs where health and fitness are not improved but decreased and for far less money. Clyde, you were lucky, you have had a good life, you were a good player and I dont agree with this article one bit. Sport is as virtuous as people make out, more so than most people make out. Sure people meet horrible people, fail and experience bad things in sport but thats life, thats the case in most, if not all, of lifes aspects. Yes there were parts of pro sport you didnt like but did you really think it was going to be all enjoyable, that elite sport would be all play and no work?

GS - hear hear..... Clyde, excellent article. Best I have read on The Roar.

Great article Clyde. Great way to bring some perspective and grounding to the frothing at the mouth with the start of the Super Rugby season and 6 nations upon us! This whole conversation reminds me about a philosophy and tactic that legendary AFL coach Kevin Sheedy used at Essendon back in the day. He required every player on the roster to either study or work at least one full time day a week outside of club commitments. The rationale was that this would create more well rounded, and importantly, responsible and mature players. With many of the cohort having gone from school straight into professional sport they haven't had the opportunity to grow and mature like most of the population through tertiary education, apprenticeship or work. The record would show that this type of initiative worked with Essendon being a powerhouse club with a great record on and off the field. At least until James Hird got embroiled in all that peptide rubbish.