Failing to impress
We fans are guilty of wanting too much, and being too fickle with our favorite sports teams. Die-hards are especially guilty.
I say this as I watched my favorite soccer team, Manchester United win 1-0 over Aston Villa and then read the follow up report, which basically said that the team failed to impress, that it was not a vintage performance.
What does that mean? Step back for a second and think about what the means. A vintage performance.
Well for Man United, that would mean easing to a 3 or 4 goal win, displaying free flowing, artful passing, solid defense, etc.
Sports fans fail to realize that teams change, and seeing as how this is the second manager since Sir Alex hung them up, I would expect there to be some growth spurts.
Vintage? One thing that many Man United fans fail to remember, and what many sports writers fail to recall is that Sir Alex, arguably one of the greatest managers ever, was not exactly, "vintage" when he first began his career. The shadow looming over him was Sir Matt.
We see this all the time. A team we expect to win, doesn't win in the fashion that we'd like or that we're accustomed to, and so we label them. They're not winners. It wasn't vintage. They failed to impress.
It's an interesting thing to be involved in as a coach. Would I rather lose in a manner more fitting to what they expect? In the case of Man United, losing while playing free flowing, artful soccer. Or would I rather win in an ugly manner?
At the end of the day, any sports fan, an honest sports fan, will take the win, no matter how ugly, no matter how gifted, over a beautiful loss. A win is a win is a win.
We get caught up in these adjectives and nouns and verbs when describing sports, failing to appreciate the end result. A win is better than a tie, and much better than a loss. A pretty loss is still a loss. An ugly win is still a win.
At the end of the day, sports fans are never going to be satisfied. They're always going to want more. A win will never be by enough. A loss should have never happened. It is the world we are involved in.
I say this as I watched my favorite soccer team, Manchester United win 1-0 over Aston Villa and then read the follow up report, which basically said that the team failed to impress, that it was not a vintage performance.
What does that mean? Step back for a second and think about what the means. A vintage performance.
Well for Man United, that would mean easing to a 3 or 4 goal win, displaying free flowing, artful passing, solid defense, etc.
Sports fans fail to realize that teams change, and seeing as how this is the second manager since Sir Alex hung them up, I would expect there to be some growth spurts.
Vintage? One thing that many Man United fans fail to remember, and what many sports writers fail to recall is that Sir Alex, arguably one of the greatest managers ever, was not exactly, "vintage" when he first began his career. The shadow looming over him was Sir Matt.
We see this all the time. A team we expect to win, doesn't win in the fashion that we'd like or that we're accustomed to, and so we label them. They're not winners. It wasn't vintage. They failed to impress.
It's an interesting thing to be involved in as a coach. Would I rather lose in a manner more fitting to what they expect? In the case of Man United, losing while playing free flowing, artful soccer. Or would I rather win in an ugly manner?
At the end of the day, any sports fan, an honest sports fan, will take the win, no matter how ugly, no matter how gifted, over a beautiful loss. A win is a win is a win.
We get caught up in these adjectives and nouns and verbs when describing sports, failing to appreciate the end result. A win is better than a tie, and much better than a loss. A pretty loss is still a loss. An ugly win is still a win.
At the end of the day, sports fans are never going to be satisfied. They're always going to want more. A win will never be by enough. A loss should have never happened. It is the world we are involved in.
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