ROBERT ALLENBY ( Herald , December 15) appears to have joined the ranks of elite sportsmen who seem to forget that the vast amounts of money they earn basically comes from their fans who may want to take photographs and generally get close to the people they admire. Without the fans, sponsors would hardly shell out small fortunes for the sportsmen not only as prizemoney but also in many cases as simply appearance money. Before getting too precious about their status, people like Allenby and [John] Daly should show some understanding rather than exhibiting petulant behaviour if a fan dares to want to take a photograph.
Dick Crane, Castle Cove
I always thought that if golfers have a problem they air it in private but, despite John Daly being an invited guest, Stuart Appleby was allowed to open his big mouth and put his club in it, starting the whole furore about Daly. Brad Clegg admits to following Daly like a persistent fly, taking shots at every opportunity. If the marshals were doing their duty, the whole incident could have been avoided. Robert Allenby is right about the booze on the 17th hole. Golf is a game of rules but it seems there is one for the players and none for the spectators.
Yvonne Brand, Turramurra
Richard Hinds ( Herald , December 15) blames the organisers of the Australian Open for creating a circus instead of a golf tournament but it was his fellow reporters, editors and publishers who made John Daly's brain-snap the biggest story of the tournament, nobody else. Instead of focusing on the sport, they opted to waste the public's time with a sideline event.
Ray Leung, Elwood, VIC Misguided Tigers
I am desperately disappointed in the decision by Richmond to draft Ben Cousins. When did we start putting talent above our other valuable human qualities? Sportsmanship, honour, self-respect and respect for not only his fellow players but for the game he supposedly loves. Like it or not, athletes are role models for our children, we want our kids to be able to dream to one day, be "just like them". We need to be teaching our kids that there are severe and irrevocable consequences to taking drugs and behaving in this pitiful manner. I suspect very few people, myself included, believe he will turn his life around. I hope he proves me wrong, I doubt he will.
Kate Maree Hoolihan, Kensington Yellow card for Fitzy
Peter FitzSimons, we know you are hurting because of the rapid and exciting development of football in Australia. However, please don't let your jealous thoughts get in the way of journalistic integrity. Your response ( Herald , Dec 13-14) to Federal Government funding of an Australian bid to stage the World Cup claims we "don't much like" football. I thought you were part of the biggest exodus from Australia since World War II to Germany in 2006? Football is our No.1 participation sport; 50,000-plus attend our World Cup qualifiers; and the A-League TV ratings have increased each year! Of course it will be tough for Australia to obtain this goal - it's a real world cup - but the dollars invested have a potential reward for the whole country. Such spending is better than going to private school scrum machines which eventually contribute to spinal injuries!
James Tulloch, Westleigh Letters letters@smh.com.au Fax: 9282 3492 GPO Box 3771, Sydney 2001
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