The fine line between hero and zero

THE sporting world revolves around very small margins, on one side of that line you are a hero and the other a villain or scapegoat.

 

I am pleased to say that last weekend we were the heroes at London Welsh with another five point victory that cemented our place in third in National Division One. 

 

It wasn’t a guaranteed victory as the game went back and forth between two good sides.  After the game I was sat in the changing room and I was happy to be in the winning changing room but I started to think how things would have changed if we had lost that game.

 

I find sport such an amazing phenomenon!  Results and performances on the field, in the pool or on the track, for example, have the ability to affect how the rest of the day, week, year or even life pans out.

 

In my case at the weekend a loss would have meant a sombre mood in the dressing room, followed by a couple of days reflection of what went wrong and then a tough week on the training ground, no doubt!  That is not to say that we won’t reflect on the performance and train hard this week but somehow it is always different when you lose.

 

I can only imagine what that feels like on the World stage, what would have happened to the life of Johnny Wilkinson if he hadn’t kicked that drop goal 5 years ago or Rebecca Adlington had missed a turn in the Olympics?

 

It is a fine line between winning and losing and we have been on the right side more than most this season but that must continue this weekend against Manchester at Meadow Lane, 6pm kick off. 

 

Hopefully I will be having another good week next week!!!

 

 

Let’s give Johnno time to find the magic formula

BIG games don’t come around very often and this weekend is potentially one of the biggest games in the club’s history.

 

To travel down to Exeter and their fantastic new stadium at Sandy Park and win is a big ask but that is the task ahead this Saturday. 

Second place Exeter against third place Nottingham, the winner moving into second and catching Leeds Carnegie in the promotion race- it is going to be huge!

 

This weekend also sees the start of Martin Johnson’s reign as England head coach and I am sure there will be a baptism of fire waiting for him and his new charges take on the players from the Pacific Islands of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa.

 

It is an exciting time for English rugby and I am sure Martin Johnson is the best man for the job but the public and media must give him time to settle in and mould the team around him.

 

Let’s not forget that it took Clive Woodward a few years to find the best formula and ultimately a world class side. 

 

Things have slipped since then and Johnson will bring a new lease of life to the England team.  But he must be allowed to make mistakes and lose games and risk a little to hopefully gain a lot more.

 

Whether it is football, rugby or cricket we always expect perfect performances and winning teams on every occasion but does it really matter if we lose a friendly here or there? 

 

Let’s look at the wider picture and give our teams a chance to grow and gel together.  English sport has a habit of being a little bit short sighted, winning the major Championships are obviously the aim so let’s trust those in charge to be building for the future.  Martin Johnson will have a game plan and I look forward to seeing that evolve.