P130
CN
III IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
A
s the faint afterglow of the
soccer World Cup in Rus-
sia dies away, there are
still some truths to be gleaned
from the embers. They have to
do with sport, scoreboards and
the essence of purity.
We all love motorcycle rac-
ing. It has athleticism, non-stop
potential for all sorts of surprises
and also quite a lot of hectic ac-
tion. Not to mention interesting
engines and absorbing technol-
ogy. But I have personally never
warmed to what footie fans are
wont (nay, determined) to call
"The Beautiful Game."
Oh, I can see the artistry of
ball control, the agility of the
footwork, the tactical teamwork.
I can also see the passion of
the fans, often at boiling point or
beyond.
But I think the main problem
is that the all-important potential
for surprises is so very seldom
fulfilled. It's the long, drawn-out
one-all games that are a real
turn-off. Worse still, the no-score
draws. Lots of seemingly point-
less running around and kicking
the ball about, all for nothing.
Then an anti-climax: after what
now feels like many hours of
unrewarded skill and artistry, the
result is decided by the random
good or bad luck of a penalty
shootout.
For some reason, the recent
THE BEAUTIFUL SPORT
