In a recent interview in the Daily Mail, Chelsea's John Terry talked cadidly about his commitment to the cause.
‘I still say if the ball is there to be won I will go for it, whether with my head or whatever, and if it means us scoring or stopping a goal, I won’t think twice.'
He continued, however, by saying he'd rather play with his kids in the garden than spend his life counting his medals in a wheelchair.
Asked the last time he played fully fit. 'Five years ago, maybe more.'
Mate. You're 29. You earn £150,000 a week, whether you play 90 minutes, ten minutes, or spend your day in the corporate box wining and dining with the family and Roman. That's nearly £900 per hour. So your injured. Whoop-de-feckin-doo. It's time you got yourself down to Stamford Bridge and got the fuck over it.
What does it mean to be committed? What does it mean to take pride in playing? Sure, you can throw yourself in front of everything, knock yourself out yada yada yada, but when you're reward is a nice hefty wage packet, surely that's the least that's expected of you?
Commitment, to me, is like love (bet u wonder what's coming next, eh?!).
It's an over-used word.
You can say you're 100% committed, and then the next week, train a little bit harder. Are you now more than 100% committed? Truth is, every week sports people strive to work that little bit harder, to get things right an extra percent of the time. For me, when you play in adversity, when people are on your back, criticism is all around you, you have taken huge risks to get where you are, and you're reward is often very little, that is committment.
How do you measure success? The number of matches you win? Medals, trophies, major competitions? Is it as simple as that? For me, success is improvement, development, not making the same mistake twice, better performances, tweaking tiny elements and noticing the difference, and having the will to suceed, that is how you measure success.
What about pride? Should you be proud to wear whatever shirt you pull on regardless of who or what team it is? For me, there is nothing like playing for your country. I am a Protestant. I would regard myself as a British Citizen. I play hockey for Ireland, alongside other Protestants, Catholics, you name it we have it. And any issues that may arise from such a situation have never once entered my mind. Religion should play no part in hockey. That is one of the unique features of sport, its ability to transcend divides, to bring people together from all walks of life. Whether I play for Ulster or Ireland, I take huge pride in pulling on the shirt. Cliche, I know. I make no apologies. To do it on the back of a pretty damn hefty slice of sacrafice makes it all the more fulfilling. heck, if I got £150000 a week, I don't think I'd even like it as much!! (Although, let's not be silly here, a little wouldn't get amiss now would it?)
There are few athletes today that epitomise committment, success and pride in one glorious package with ribbon and a bow on top, and I myself am far from it. But it is so important, before you make the steps to acheive such goals, that you know what it means and what it takes to get there. For me, every day is like a school day (thanks Clarkie), and I'm constantly made aware of how to get where you want to be. stepping stones and all that jazz. All I know for sure is that I'm in it for the long haul, hold me back at your peril.
It's a pity u only live once, ain't it?
