Win the worst? Or lose the best?

[Damien]

Interesting opening paragraph to Richard Hinds article in the SMH this morning:

"There is a vital question that divides those who consider football to be a sport and those who believe it is merely a form of entertainment: Would you rather see your team win the worst match of the year or lose the best match?"

So what do you prefer?

For me, I just want the swans to win - sure you can feel proud losing to say a Brisbane in Brisbane, and the game is high class, but I tell you what, I would feel better seeing a crap game and the four points flying back to Sydney with them.....

Obviously the preference is winning high class games, but I refuse to believe in honourable losses, they don't do anything for me.

Other AFL matches can be my footy entertainment, I just need 4 points from the swans :-)

[swansrule100]

losing is never any good id rather watch the swans win 25 boring games for the year and hold the cup up in september than see one great loss

[NMWBloods]

In the short term winning is better than losing, however I would also not be keen to barrack for a team that plays a continual boring brand of football.

[swansrule100]

boring teams dont win that much football really...... if u chip around and play boring footy teams like the lions and so on carve you up.

i cant think of a dominant team that was a really boring side...

[penga]

port are a boring side, they win games!

[swansrule100]

hmmm they dont win premierships....

and some think they can be exciting lol

[j0lly]

hmmm depends if im watching tele or at the game

[dawson]

I'd say win the best but many times atmosphere is dictated to by the circumstances ie finals, grand finals, etc.

But for set in stone games like Anzac Day, derbies, etc home and away matches are the luck of the draw and depend on when the two teams play each other.

IE If we had to play the Cats now, would be a far bigger game then it was when we met earlier in the year.

[BAM_BAM]

win win win win win win any day all day!

[Destructive]

I'd rather win a bad match than lose a thriller.

When we win a bad match you go home feeling not too bad - lose a thriller and you go home feeling rather drained.

[robbieando]

JUST WIN BABY

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Definitely the 4 premiership points. We played really well in Brisbane, yet didn't come up with anything (apart an injury to Davis, and RobbieAndo for that matter. )

You cannot trade the feeling we had after the Port final for anything. Had we lost, nobody would have remembered how gallant we were.

JF

[liz]

I reckon - purely on entertainment value - a scrap such as we got on Saturday night is just as good as a more skillful show, particularly when you're emotionally involved. Sure, we like to see the spectacular and thankfully there were a few bits of that too on the weekend, but a high scoring shoot-out where there is no pressure on the ball carriers and teams are just trading goal for goal can get just as dull as a game where there is a mass of ball-ups and throw-ins.

One of the friends I sit with brought her (English) cousin to the game - her first. At the end Heather and I both kinda apologised to Helen that it hadn't been that great a spectacle for the novice but she thought we were daft. Her eyes were glowing with the excitement of it all. If she lived here I reckon we'd have another convert on our hands.

[TheHood]

Originally posted by lizz
At the end Heather and I both kinda apologised to Helen that it hadn't been that great a spectacle for the novice but she thought we were daft. Her eyes were glowing with the excitement of it all. If she lived here I reckon we'd have another convert on our hands.

I reckon you're daft and that's got nothing to do with the apology for the game...just an observation I have!

[NMWBloods]

I think a skillful running, kicking, marking game craps all over an arm wrestle with lots of ball ups and clangers, even if the latter happens to be high pressure and close.

Witness the goal fest from Ess v. NM a few years ago - one of the best games of football I have watched for quite some time.