graham christian

Hi Christian.
Nice to read a different view. You did make me think of football (soccer) and how it is a national sport over here, much like kendo was in japan.

Funny thing is that 90% of boys and men over here know lots about football, play it in schools as part of the curriculum, many play for fun in Sunday leagues and five a sides way after such schooldays and millions support a team.

The most popular talk show on the radio in london is dedicated to football and everyone who phones in is an 'expert'.

So they all, especially supporters, consider themselves 'experts' on the game.

Now those who are really good at historical things and data are considered 'anaraks' a bit like 'geeks'

Now the anoraks and geeks love discussing and debating minor things like 'shin pads' with passion and 'he saids' etc. while the supporters just want to talk about the football, with passion.

Meanwhile there are then the practitioners of the sport both amateur and professional. Now along with them there are the coaches and managers and sports psychologists etc.

Now a professional or even an amateur may in interviews say such things as at such an age or after meeting so and so I decided to go and learn more about my trade and improve my skill level. Usually it's more like 'I decided to take it more seriously' . Now this doesn't mean they didn't know football but it meant they wanted personally to get even more into it.

Meanwhile, the teams all train their own particular ways, the clubs all do things their own particular ways, the players all devise their own particular ways of training along with their personal coaches as well as joint training.

Now do I ever hear players insulting the way other players train? Do I ever hear managers or coaches insulting such things? Would the governing body even allow such things? No....... If and when it does happen it is big news and the insulter suffers the consequences.

Once again it's only the anoraks and geeks who get into such things.

Football clubs even have their own philosophies as to how the game should be played but does this take it away from being football? No, of course it doesn't. Because football like all things is defined by it's actions and not mixed with the actions of other sports. Only coaches borrow different training techniques from other sports to use.

So we have big clubs and small clubs, rich clubs and poor clubs, but what is a good club? Players can tell you, the clubs they felt welcome at, had fun at, and did well at. Anoraks couldn't tell one from the other and so their reasoning is based on false criteria.

Now rugby is different, it's more a grappling sport. Football would no longer be football if it started doing that. Of course there are some folk who play both, I did, but funny how I never related the two.

Another thing I noticed is the best managers, currently Alex Ferguson and the next possible England Manager, Harry Rednapp, and an all time folk hero of the past Brian Clough all keep telling people the secret of their success but no one seems to listen. Just go play, you know what to do. That's it.

These managers just controlled the players temperaments and behaviour that's all. So apart from that be free to express yourself your way and don't listen to the negative anoraks. When opposition supporters put you down it's because they are scared of you. They know you are good. When your own supporters do, then it's time to worry.

No ones come up with a mixed ball sport yet, maybe if they did they would consider it superior.

Too many chiefs methinks and yet the indians have the best views.

If you're used to being a football fan over here then you are used to all the banter and put downs from other fans and you are used to the mad logic used in response and you are used to that whole mad mental world involved. The game of making the other wrong. Childsplay.

I'll just carry on as you say, promoting Aikido in all it's forms and also promoting the words of Ueshiba and the spiritual context as well. It's all good.

Regards.G.