PLAYING THE CROWD
It is easy' to believe ex-Captain Woodfull's statement that cricketers of potential greatness have left first-class cricket, or have left cricket altogether, because of the offensiveness of barracking. The strain of being a top-notch batsman is sufficient in itself, without being the Aunt Sally of ribald barrackers; and any man who is not in cricket for Kis living may well have doubts whether "the game" is "worth the candle.'' So also in other sports. Perry's candid talks oh professionalism suggest that top-notch < . lawn tennis is too exacting—even apart from barracking—for a part-time job. When rising to the crisis of a great game or a great race, a marl, or even a horse, is keyed to concert pitch;,and the behaviour of the crowd may add just that something which undermines nervous power. The horse is fortunate in that it does not hear what is said, but the man has to listen to things that are, in Woodfull's phrase, "beyond the pale." A match won by barracking is a poor win; and a true player cannot find- any satisfaction in seeing an opponent "barracked out." •
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19360711.2.38
Bibliographic details
Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 10, 11 July 1936, Page 8
Word Count
186PLAYING THE CROWD Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 10, 11 July 1936, Page 8
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Evening Post. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Log in