| A CONSTITUTION OF SORTS! |
| Definition | Socialist Football |
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Somebody else said; "it's not the winning that counts, it's the taking part". Some may say that competitive football doesn't equate with the cooperative ideals of socialism. Should a socialist football team avoid the pursuit of competitive success? This presents the club with the dilemma that good competition, and seeking success, might jeopardise our other deals. If we abandoned all our ideals we would definitely become a more successful football team. But we won't go that far, so a balance has to be struck. Our players aren't just picked on ability;
Selection Criteria;
- A player's individual ability.
- A player's ability to contribute as a member of a team.
- A player's contribution to the club socially and as an
organisation.
- A player's acceptance of the club's philosophy and values.
But that dilemma extends to our organisation and what we aim for? Recently we've been pretty well organised, more so than in the past. The spirit and commitment from the players has been excellent. And the playing ability of the team has been impressive as dedicated effort has matched strong ambition. We have set quite high footballing expectations, which are also quite realistic. Nobody has beaten us simply because they were better. Nobody has really scared us by their ability. Points lost have indeed been "lost" - as consistency has been good but not perfect. The club has been going since 1984 now, and for the first 5 seasons or so we were pretty awful. We had a good spell for about 3 years, then the standard dropped again over roughly the next 3. More recently standards have improved again. So we enjoy it while it's good, because it can't always be like that!
So what's this preoccupation with winning and excellence?! Some of you may indeed question whether this is compatible with the club constitution? Some think the politics of the left don't square with competitiveness? Others disagree. Our constitution and ideals should never be lost in the pursuit of glory, but we can be constitutional and competitively successful.
One of the best examples of this is the sporting culture of Cuba. The Cubans are mad about sport, embrace it as a fundamental part of Socialist Culture, and have a fantastic record of achievement in International Sport. There are many individual illustrations of this in a variety of sports, but one of the most impressive is of Teofilio Stevenson. He fought as an amateur heavyweight boxer in three Olympics, and would have fought in four if not for the boycott of Los Angeles in 84. He was quite devastating, never beaten and won four gold medals. His reign spanned the careers of Ali to Tyson. Over that time he had many offers to fight professionally, take on a series of world champions, to defect, and cash in on his ability. He chose not to. He would have been the richest boxer ever. But he didn't want to leave Cuba or abandon his Socialist principles. He settled for the reward of a house, a teaching job, and the respect and admiration of his fellow Cubans. What he believed in was more important to him than how good he was, or what he was worth?
So Republica; if we abandoned our principles, recruited unscrupulously, and behaved without conscience on the pitch, ..we could be much more successful, but we won't! Like Teofilio Stevenson, our values are more important. And like him and other Cubans, we can embrace Socialist Culture and be competitively successful, but maybe not quite as good as they are!
We have chosen to compete in the Leeds Sunday Leagues. We don't have to. We could join another league, or play friendlies, or not even play fixtures at all! Or maybe cancel the winter season and just enjoy the summer festivals? We can do any of those things, but so far we've chosen not to. So while we're there, we'll show them that football can be played and enjoyed in an alternative way. And while we're doing that, let's try and beat the bastards ..that would really make them think! ..So play on Republica! And keep the Red and Black flags flying high!
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