(Picture Credit - Ali by Ali)
Sports pundits bang on about hard work, tactics and character. Nobody cares about real skill, ability, flair or talent. We have our priorities wrong…
Many know me as a veteran local Table Tennis player.
I’m sure many also see me as a player who takes the game too casually. But one
of my team-mates Phil knows better. He once said, “You make the game look easy
Paul!” And that’s the point.
Listen to football (soccer) managers and players:
“We’ve worked really hard in training and should do well today.” Or, “I was
very pleased with our work rate, everyone got behind the ball and we showed
lots of character.” Or, “We played the wrong formation today, that’s why we
lost.” They sound like some of these big blokes in the gym: “No pain, no gain.”
So what the hell is wrong with SKILL? With being so
good that the game looks easy. The great players always seem to have loads of
time and space in which to strut their stuff. Look at Roger Federer (tennis), Muhammad
Ali (boxing), Pele (football). Let that talent flow. Show those silky skills.
True, raw talent must be combined with some hard work.
See how Barcelona football team, brimming with sublime genius, press their
opponents to win possession. Watch any Rugby League team how they work like
Trojans, especially in defence. See how the gifted Eden Hazard tracks-back for
Chelsea. Or how hard Novak Djokovic (tennis) works.
But you can’t beat Ability. When I go running this
week I will bear all this in mind. I will try to run smoothly with my head held
high. Neither slow nor neck-breakingly fast, just with “animal ease”. That’s
the way to go. Not Quantity but Quality.
Paul
Butters
