Scottish Football Reminiscences and Sketches — John Shaqi
Scottish Football Reminiscences and SketchesBone, David Drummond
History
Scottish Football Reminiscences and Sketches
Bone, David Drummond
Football
be so cheaply indulged in, with so much profit to health, as Football.
Accidents do happen occasionally, I admit, but they are exceedingly few
when the number of young men engaged in the game is taken into account,
combined with the fact that, last year, some of the leading Association
matches were played much more roughly than in previous years, it is an
astonishing fact that no fatal accident occurred in Scotland. There are,
of course, many, if the whole truth must be written, whom the exciting
and manly game has failed to touch by its magic and fascinating
influence, but they should not be courted, and fortunately their
patronage is neither sought nor needed, for they are the men most to be
avoided on a wintry Saturday afternoon while one is on his way to see an
exciting "cup tie." Depend upon it, they will allure you to some haunt
where the language is not even so choice as where the "final" is being
played between two leading clubs.
I am fully convinced that when the game was first improved and adapted
to stand side by side with others requiring both pluck and skill, the
thought never entered the heads of its promoters that some of the laws
might be abused, not used. Unfortunately, such is too true, and the
sooner these things are discouraged the better. The old precept about
warriors feeling a stern joy when they knew they were opposed to foemen
worthy of their steel, should never be forgotten by the biggest back,
half-back, or the smallest forward. To put it in another way,
gentlemanly conduct towards an opponent in the field is pleasing to see,
and, indeed, civility is worth much, and costs nothing--only a small
effort of self-denial. In this enlightened age, the nation who crows too
much over a vanquished foe is naturally detested, and why should not
this spirit regulate the game of Football? If this were carefully
remembered during the season, there would undoubtedly be such a close
bond of fellowship and good feeling amongst Football players that
nothing could disturb.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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