Football, Michael Tuck once said, is an endless series of kicks in the guts. Tucky had just about the complete footballing career – seven premierships, 39 finals and about 3,500 games. But in the end, all he could think about was the struggle, the setbacks and the (rare) losses.
The football field isn’t the Gaza Strip and we should be wary of anyone who refers to a knee injury as a tragedy. I remember when Melbourne’s David Schwarz, just 23 at the time, injured his knee for the third time and the TV man interviewing him was almost in tears. “Cheer up mate,” Schwarz said. “I’m fine.”
