WhiteStripe
Get out of my club you cretin!
- Aug 23, 2006
- 14,211
- 4,984
I have seen a hell of a lot of people saying "We should rest all our good players tonight as the tie is lost and we need to focus on the league".
I understand the sentiment behind these feelings, but seriously, why should we rest our best players?
For starters, injury wise, our players are just as likely to pick up a knock in training than in the match, so should we also stop training from here on in?
Secondly, our next match is a week away, so there is no issue around recovery. In fact another game under the belts of players like Bale, VDV, Kaboul, Lennon and Huddlestone will only be a good thing as it will help their match sharpness.
Thirdly, this is our biggest, most high profile game possibly ever at WHL in front of a tv audience of millions worldwide, not to mention 30,000 fans having paid anything up to £100 to watch the match. Why would we want to field a weak side for this? Why would we want to go into a game that although looking likely to be nothing more than a friendly in its relevance, is still not over? Do we want to be known as the team who gives up after 45 minutes?
If we are 3-0 down to Arsenal at half time next week, do we sub our best players and throw in the towel? Would the same fans advocating doing this tonight be happy if we did v Arsenal?
Also, how do you think the big stars of our team will react to being told they are being rested in what for many of them, will be their biggest match of their careers?
Seriously, I'm all for loading the die in our favour for the run in, but we should not start tonight by playing half a team. If we are going out, we should go out in style, not with a whimper.
"It is better to fail aiming high than to succeed aiming low. And we of Spurs have set our sights very high... so high, in fact, that even failure will have in it an echo of glory!"
— Bill Nicholson OBE
We are better than a team who throws in the towel. COYS.
I understand the sentiment behind these feelings, but seriously, why should we rest our best players?
For starters, injury wise, our players are just as likely to pick up a knock in training than in the match, so should we also stop training from here on in?
Secondly, our next match is a week away, so there is no issue around recovery. In fact another game under the belts of players like Bale, VDV, Kaboul, Lennon and Huddlestone will only be a good thing as it will help their match sharpness.
Thirdly, this is our biggest, most high profile game possibly ever at WHL in front of a tv audience of millions worldwide, not to mention 30,000 fans having paid anything up to £100 to watch the match. Why would we want to field a weak side for this? Why would we want to go into a game that although looking likely to be nothing more than a friendly in its relevance, is still not over? Do we want to be known as the team who gives up after 45 minutes?
If we are 3-0 down to Arsenal at half time next week, do we sub our best players and throw in the towel? Would the same fans advocating doing this tonight be happy if we did v Arsenal?
Also, how do you think the big stars of our team will react to being told they are being rested in what for many of them, will be their biggest match of their careers?
Seriously, I'm all for loading the die in our favour for the run in, but we should not start tonight by playing half a team. If we are going out, we should go out in style, not with a whimper.
"It is better to fail aiming high than to succeed aiming low. And we of Spurs have set our sights very high... so high, in fact, that even failure will have in it an echo of glory!"
— Bill Nicholson OBE
We are better than a team who throws in the towel. COYS.
