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Take a Bow

3 min read
by Editor
Danny Rose caused quite a stir after his interview with a certain newspaper at the start of the season. Fred Kavanagh believes a subsequent interview shed a little more light on him and those in similar situations.

Our fanatical minds often put the players we pay to watch on a god like pedestal. Whether it’s deemed that their monotonous nature isn’t interesting enough or that anything remotely thought-provoking is ruthlessly media trained out of them, a mystical aura is created around the personal lives of these athletes. Yet when we do get a glimpse into the on-goings of their day to day activities what often plays out is an overreaction of epic proportions.

It was only at the beginning of the season that Danny Rose lifted the lid on his feelings towards his current professional situation. He questioned his financial worth in the current inflated market as well as the direction in which Tottenham were heading towards. Now the reaction he received was somewhat justified due to the manner in which he dealt with his emotions, not to mention the newspaper he gave the interview to, which we won’t go into here. But much like how all of these ‘incidents’ play out, it’s never long before the stands are roaring his name again. What a fickle bunch we are.

However, his further comments to the world’s media shed a completely different light on him, and in fact, football stars all over the world. His emotional outpour to his psychologist helping him through his injury-plagued spell was a stark reminder that these people are, like all of us, people. You would think there are very few that can produce much empathy when you’re tossing the coin over whether your services are worthy of £100k or £200k per week, but that cannot be said for this personal insight of his.

[linequote]It’s never long before the stands are roaring his name again. What a fickle bunch we are.[/linequote]

Within the last three years he turned himself (with the help of the club) into one of the hottest properties in English football, being linked with big clubs for big money. As one of the first names on the team sheet for both club and country, his standards seemed forever on the incline. So when he described his injury estimations going from ‘a couple of weeks… to months’ and the potential of never playing again, the reality must have been numbing. You can’t quantify the bad without the good, and in his case, when that high is through the roof the emotional comedown must be devastating.

There is no doubt that Danny Rose isn’t the only ‘god’ that suffers from the mental constraints that football can throw at you but he’s a rare breed to reveal such truths. We saw last year the battles Aaron Lennon suffered from and thankfully he seems in a far better place than what he was, now playing more regular football again in the top flight.

[linequote]Harmony should always apply in the face of mental health[/linequote]

What is also important is the reaction from the stands. Like I said, fanatical behaviour can lend itself to unpredictable and rash emotions. It’s what makes the game so f**king addictive. The reception from both sets of supporters during the last fixture including Everton and Spurs was a moving reminder of what collective unity can achieve. And when these gods of ours are concerned, harmony should always apply in the face of mental health.

Rose’s rallying cry for athletes to speak out about the mental barriers that exist within the game is a true testament to the man. The dialogue that can be opened on such issues will only help those that need it, whether it be on the football pitch or in the more humble surroundings of your own space.

His outspoken nature landed him in a lot of trouble a few months ago, yet it’s this characteristic of his that should provide him a non-fictional aura to all fans, not just those of Tottenham.

All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.

2 Comments

  1. George
    28/11/2017 @ 12:44 pm

    You were doing fine right up until the last paragraph. What the hell does a “non-fictional aura” do when it’s at home? I’ve tried to analyse it: non-fictional suggests factual, so does that mean he has a factual aura? Or does non-fictional in this context means non-imaginary? Clarify, please!

  2. Fred
    28/11/2017 @ 9:47 pm

    As opposed to the ‘god like pedestal’

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