Thank Goodness We Have Sports!

Sometimes in life, we can take sports a little too seriously.

We all have our teams that we follow, our sports that we're passionate about, and from time to time we all fancy ourselves as arm-chair Sir Alex Fergusons', or Martin Johnsons' or for you yanks out there- Phil Jacksons'.

If I went to my local pub this evening, I could virtually guarantee that somebody in there will be having a heated debate about sports. 

As it's the middle of January I'm guessing that it will be about football, and because I live in Dudley, it will be about West Bromwich Albion's victory last night in the Championship, or about how pathetic Wolves were on Tuesday night in the F.A Cup.

It gives us a sense of belonging, a sense of friendship, a sense of something special that bonds complete strangers.  If only for 90 minutes on Saturday afternoon and during the post mortems after. 

Sometimes things can happen that can help us put our 'bordering-on-obsessive' love of sports into perspective.

The Haitian earthquake was an epic catastrophe, human suffering at it's very worst.  The kind of tragedy that can stop your belief in a greater good.

The earthquake was a very international tragedy, but we all have our tragedies.  Whether they are personal or otherwise, we all have them.

When I do, I find it's my 'bordering-on-obsession' love of sports that can help lighten my mood.

Not even one week after the earthquake, Trinidad played Guyana in a 20:20 cricket match to help raise funds for the victims.  The result was irrelevant, the spirit in which it was organised and the money that was raised was.

Whenever there is an international tragedy now, it seems sport always plays its part. Sportsmen and women around the world are more then that.  They're entertainers, they're role models, and they can even be beacons of hope. 

Nobody pretends that all sportsmen and women are perfect.  Humans aren't designed to be, and it's these fallibility’s that we as people most identify with.

The average person on the street doesn't make the sort of money or lead the sort of lifestyle that sports people have.  But they make exactly the same mistakes as we do, and it is strangely comforting.       

And that's the reason that we fall in love with our teams and our stars. 

That's why this weekend and every weekend, for a few glorious hours nothing else will matter. That's because this weekend is the beginning of the Six Nations Rugby with England V Wales, (Go England!) Arsenal plays Chelsea, (Go Arsenal!) and then it's 'The Greatest Show on Turf' the Superbowl (Go Saints!)

None of these matches will make the troubles and worries in our lives and in the world disappear.  But for those few glorious hours, the only thing that will matter is why England are playing a tactical kicking game (again,) or why Arsene Wenger didn't buy that striker that Arsenal so desperately need, or that Drew Brees and Peyton Manning are making this Superbowl the greatest ever.

Sometimes in life, we can take sports a little too seriously. 

I am glad we do.