OtherPress2014Vol40No30.pdf-17

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(¥ Thoughts from around the NFL
Y Least in the East

(Y Holding up sense

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Contact: Eric Wilkins, Sports Editor

M sports@theotherpress. ca

www theotherpress.ca

Selfies, streaking, and screaming

» When spectator interaction interferes with play



1 Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

pectators being passionate

about what they're watching
has always been a core element
of professional sports. Without
an audience, there would be no
point in the glory of competing
in the big games. Most athletes

enjoy the attention, both on and
off the field, whether it’s signing :

autographs, tossing a ball toa
fan, or even just reacting to the
most enthusiastic members

of the crowd. (Honestly, what
would be the point of watching
Canucks games ifnot for the
green men these days?)

But, as with all tasks that
require great energy and
concentration, distractions
can easily throw a player’s
mindset off. They’re there to
play their absolute hardest, and
that’s why they’ve practiced
for years and years and get
paid millions of dollars to do
so. What’s more important at
the end of the game—to have
played to the best of your ability
for the good of the team, or
to have given some attention
to one out of the thousands
of ticket holders that day?

Recently, two fans ran onto
the field during a soccer match
to take selfies with Manchester

: City’s Mario Balotelli. Although
: Balotelli wasn’t amused at first

: and the two were eventually

: escorted away by security, he

: posed happily for the photos,

: which then went viral online

: as the fans bragged of not

: being punished. Although

: Manchester City went on to eas-
: ily win the game, such distrac-

: tions could ’ve easily interrupted
: an important play or strategy.

Fans come out to the arena

to have a good time. They pay
: money to leave with special
: memories and see athletes they




: admire play a game. It’s even

: better ifthey walk away witha
; memento of the day—perhaps
: a caught foul ball or even an

: autograph or photo with their
: favourite player. But there’s

: atime and place for the fan

: interaction, and what’s most

7 : important is that there’s respect
: for those doing their jobs.

} Interrupting actors during a

". } play or asking for a photo with

a singer during a concert is

: almost unheard of and would be
: ridiculous. Security guards and
: social norms exist to remove

: these sorts of nuisances. Yet

.? it’s not only easy to bypass

: security and harass a player

: or go streaking for that brief

: moment of attention in sports

: today, it’s almost encouraged

by the media and other fans.

Athletes arguably face

: more pressure than any other

: type of entertainer. Every

: single time they perform, it’s

: important they play at 10 per

: cent. While being known for

: kindness to fans is alwaysa

: good trait, it comes second

: to maintaining their profes-

: sional duties and giving it all

: they’ve got. Even too much

: verbal communication with

: the audience can throw their

: concentration off, especially if

: they’re being taunted for failing
: aplay. Sports are supposed to be
: about the game and the players,
: not the overzealous fans.

So keep your taunts to

: players at aminimum (unless
: they really, really choked this
: time) and save your streaking
: for the next frat party. Enjoy

: the game, be respectful,

: and remember what the

: athletes are there to do.



Fourth down

» Two no-no’s from in the NFL

Eric Wilkins
Sports Editor



ci MA sports
K es @theotherpress.ca
aryl Washington. Robert
Mathis. Lane Johnson.
Dion Jordan. Stedman Bailey.
What do all of these players
have in common? Talent for
sure, but in this case they’rea
collection of a significantly less
glamourous identifier. All of the
players, along with several oth-
ers in 2014, have been dealt lon-
ger suspensions than Ray Rice.
Normally, pointing out a
handful of players with heavier
suspensions than someone else
isn’t a big deal, but Rice’s case

: isn’t a normal situation. Not

: one to be taken lightly in the

: least. The Baltimore running

: back was arrested in February
: for allegedly assaulting his

: then-fiancée (now wife), Janay
: Palmer. Rice later pleaded

: not guilty to third-degree

: aggravated assault and joined a
: pretrial intervention program.
: The NFL gave Rice two games.

Two games. Washington

got a whole season. Mathis,

: Johnson, Jordan, and Bailey all
: got four games. What did they
: do to be temporarily banned

: from the league? Drugs and

: substance abuse. No physical

: violence. Not evena slap. It’s

: curious what exactly runs

: through the head of Roger

: Goodell. The message he

: appears to be sending is: “Cheat
: and we'll nail you; commit an

: actual crime and you'll sit in

: a corner for five minutes.”

Goodell’s words have a

: distinct disconnect from his

: actions: “We have a very firm

: policy that domestic violence

: isnot acceptable in the NFL,

: and that there will be conse-

: quences for that. I think what’s
: important here is that Ray has
: taken responsibility for this.

: He’s been accountable for his

: actions. He recognizes he made
: a horrible mistake, that it is

: unacceptable by his standards
: and by our standards.”

For his part, Rice is saying

: all the right things: “I never

: planned on appealing any kind
: of punishment. Whether it

: was two games, four games,

: six games, eight games—I

: was going to own my actions

: and bea man about it and

: take whatever was given to

: me.” But even he has to realize
: how lightly he’s getting off.

Ona lesser note, but still

a poor action for the league’s
: image, Arian Foster recently
: delivered one of the worst

: media performancesinsome
: time. The Houston Texans run- :
: ning back answered every ques- :
: tion posed to him, from what it
: was like to train at his brother's
: facility in the off-season to

: whether his body was break-

: ing down or not, with some

: variation of, “I’m just trying

: to be the best teammate I can

: be,” and the occasional, “Work
: hard and that kinda thing.”

It was akin to when

: children give their parents

: lip or obstinately refuse to

: show any kind of maturity.

: Foster’s tantrum did little to

: change the image many have
: of various sports stars as rich,
: spoiled brats. Like it or not,

: players have a duty to speak

: to the media, and through

the media, the fans. Every
job has aspects that won’t

: always be pleasant or may not
: be one’s favourite task, but if

: everything was fun and games
: it wouldn't bea job, would it?