HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times-Advocate, 2002-11-20, Page 4Sports used to have two basic rules. Players (men)
played when they were told to, hurt or not. And fam-
ilies were people who the players might meet during
the season when management deemed it appropri-
ate. The team came first and weddings, births and
funerals were best scheduled in the off season. When
championships were won, wives and children were
nowhere to be seen.
But in the last year, stadiums have started to look
like it is bring your child to work day. Children have
become a photo-op part of team celebrations,
whether it is Team Canada receiving gold
medals while balancing offspring on their
shoulders, or Steve Yzerman’s daughter stand-
ing beside him at centre ice as he received the
Stanley Cup. One youngster even got a little too
close to the action in the World Series, when
the 3-year-old son of San Fransisco Giants
manager Dusty Baker, got too eager to retrieve
a bat. And when children become part of team
pictures, can wives be far behind?
Injuries used to be treated as an inconve-
nience by players (and management). As
Toronto Maple Leaf general manager Punch
Imlach said in the 1960s, “If he can walk, he can
play.” Free agency and players’ unions rewrote the
rule book on who runs sports, but the code remained
the same. Injuries were stitched, taped, or ignored
and concussions were shrugged off as ‘getting your
bell rung.’
The code separated winning teams from those who
were merely close, as the Edmonton Oilers found out
in 1983. After being swept by the New York
Islanders in the Stanley Cup final, the unscathed
Oilers saw the bruised and battered Islanders and
realized how much it took to win.
Playing hurt produces the most enduring images
and stories in sport. Bobby Baun scored on a frac-
tured ankle (or was it a broken leg?) Rocket Richard
scored a playoff-winning goal he couldn’t remember
because he was semi-conscious from a knee to the
head. Steve Yzerman lead his team to a Stanley Cup
last year using his stick as a crutch; it will soon be
part of that lore.
But those images may become a thing of
the past as the result of a court settlement
in Philadelphia. A jury awarded former
Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Dave
Babych $1.37 million because he said his
career was ended prematurely when he
was pressured to play on a broken foot.
Players wishing to ignore their injuries
now may be forced to sign a waiver
absolving teams of responsibility before
being allowed to play. Even then, teams
may not allow it, as the Leafs did last
spring. Despite the willingness of defence-
man Dimitri Yushkevich to play with a blood clot in
his leg, the team refused to let him, fearing for his
health and their responsibility.
In the future, pictures of players being stitched up
on the bench before going back out to score the win-
ning goal, may be replaced by scenes of them signing
waivers for the team lawyer, who will be a required
part of the bench staff. More sensible perhaps, but
not quite as memorable.
4 Wednesday, November 20, 2002Exeter Times–Advocate
Editorial&Opinion
Jim Beckett
Publisher and Editor
Don Smith Deb Lord
General Manager Production Manager
Published by Metroland Printing,
Publishing & Distributing Ltd.
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PAT BOLEN
BACK 40
VIEW
The changing face of sports
S anta Claus is coming to town. And
once again, shoppers are heading out
of town like lemmings.
It happens every year. About the time local
merchants deck their halls with boughs of holly
and other festive bits of greenery in preparation
for all those important Christmas shoppers, many
of us start planning a trek to the big city malls.
For some strange reason we have the idea that
shopping locally means poor selection and higher
prices. We know we should shop locally, but...
For selection, small local merchants often carry
the same merchandise as their big city counter-
parts. The difference is they carry three or four of
a particular item instead of three or four hun-
dred.
This also means the local merchant might take
a chance on one or two interesting products,
because he is buying only one or two, not several
dozen. The result is better selection.
If we are looking for unique, one-of-a-kind
gifts, we will find them here at great prices - the
same hand-crafted furniture, stained glass orna-
ments, pottery, paintings, jewelry and sculpture
that summer visitors search out and buy.
Our skilled artisans, craftspeople and artists do
not disappear with the falling leaves. They live
here and work here. Their galleries may be open
on weekends or by special appointment instead of
daily. Their work may be displayed in a corner of
a local gift shop or variety store. We can find
some wonderful items for the special people on
our gift list, at a fraction of the price we would
pay at a city boutique.
If we were thinking straight, we would realize
that big city malls are expensive pieces of real
estate. The stores in them pay high rent and
taxes, which they pass on to their customers. A
local store with more modest rent and expenses
might be able to offer excellent prices.
Shoppers at the city malls do come out ahead
on some items. Buying in volume has its benefits.
However, when we calculate the overall cost of
the trip, we must include travel time, the price of
gas, parking, and probably a meal or two. And we
had better hope we do not have to return the item
for a refund.
Many of our local merchants depend on the hol-
iday season to stay in business. A good season
means healthy profits. A poor season means one
or two more boarded up windows on the main
street.
Before we plan our next shopping junket to the
city, we should ask ourselves where we plan to
knock on doors the next time our service club is
raising funds for something, the big city mall
stores or our downtown shops.
The guy who owns the little store on the corner
coaches minor baseball every summer and is a
member of the hospital board of directors. His
wife teaches Sunday School at our church, and
chairs an important local committee. Their kids
play hockey with our kids. They pays taxes in this
community. We have a vested interest in keeping
that shop open and thriving.
Shopping locally truly is the gift that keeps on
giving.
Shop locally
for great
Christmas gifts