Ronaldo no role model

Earlier this month Cristiano Ronaldo won the FIFA World Player of the Year. The Portuguese international is a superstar; no question. He is one of the best footballers in the world; no question. He is a role model for kids; questionable.

While his skills on the pitch cannot be doubted, there is not a lot else to admire. A hero or role model he is not! A role model is someone worthy of imitation. Apart from his step-over, there is not much you would want to see imitated.

David Beckham, soon to turn 34, for all his dalliances with the media due to his celebrity marriage, has continued to do what he knows best – play football. Sure he has modelled Calvin Klein underwear, has an increasing percentage of his body covered in tattoos and drives lavish cars; but he continues to confound his critics on the football field.

And on the field, the current AC Milan player is one who will play for the betterment of the team, even if it is not necessarily in his own self-interest. The same unfortunately cannot yet be said of Ronaldo who only seeks to inflate his own ego.

Last May when Edwin Van der Sar saved Nicolas Anelka’s penalty to win the Champion’s League for United, his team-mates charged to celebrate with him, including Ronaldo. The Portuguese checked his run. He was not the centre of attention. Crisis.

So he collapsed on the ground as easily as he would under a challenge from an opponent and ‘cried’. Cue every camera in the ground to zoom in on Ronaldo prostrate on the pitch. Once again centre of attention. Crisis over.


Compare this to Beckham’s reaction on guaranteeing England’s qualification for the 2002 World Cup with his last minute goal against Greece. Unbridled joy and excitement. Of course he was the centre of attention, but that attention was shared with his teammates.

This interest in his team has seen Beckham return on sabbatical from LA to play for a number of months in Milan to prove his worth to England supremo Fabio Capello. His fitness levels have remained at the levels that often saw him cover more than ten kilometres for Manchester United as he sought to cover every blade of grass on the pitch.

And yet, Beckham would one of the first to say that while he had the natural talents to become a professional footballer, it took much more than that to make him the best dead ball specialist in the world.

This dedication to the ‘practice makes perfect’ philosophy provided people with an insight into the man. It made him more human. Beckham, too, has to work hard to get better. Ronaldo, well he believes it is his divine right to be called the best in the world (he’s not, just ask anyone who watches Spanish football). The former England captain’s dedication to his sport and the teams he played and plays on is something worth holding up to be admired.

So popular is the Premiership that people often forget to look nearer to home for role models. Irish kids need only look at Padraig Harrington to understand what dedication and self-belief can achieve.

Harrington is one of the best golfers in the world and he could very easily go down in history as Ireland’s greatest sportsman ever.

Harrington’s well known devotion to practice verges on the extreme. However if the capture of three golf majors out of the last six is the return, where can people sign up? While it is said that Tiger Woods did not play in the last two that the Irishman won, he could only beat those playing on the day. Even if the World number one was playing, who’s to say the Dubliner would not have beaten him, such is his self-belief; one that few other sportsmen or women across any field can match.

Indeed, Harrington is one of the few world golfers who does not cower from the challenge of Woods when coming up the straight. In fact he revels in it.

However, it has taken 13 years to get to where he is now. Harrington was cautious about turning pro, so much so that he did not do so until he was 24 having gained an accounting degree. Just in case. But year-on-year his performances have improved and now in his prime and only more will be expected of him. The greatest expectation will only come from Harrington himself.

The Dubliner has simply refused to rest on his laurels and has continually sought ways to improve his game. And yet as he has moved steadily up the sporting ladder, he has continued to keep his feet on the ground. A worthy role model.

Our hero thought he could fly last week. But we all know what happens when you try to fly too near the sun.

Let the games begin

According to Paul Azinger, Nick Faldo is a “prick”. While Seve Ballesteros, once described the American team as “11 nice guys and Paul Azinger”. But all the fighting and shouting is almost at an end as the players will take centre stage and shine. Almost since the two captains were appointed, they have been going hammer and tongs at each other.

Much was made of Faldo’s wild card selections and his omission of the in-form Darren Clarke. That must now all be left behind and the 12 European players present at Valhalla must be allowed to concentrate on the task at hand.

In contrast to Faldo, who had a number of options available to him when choosing his wild cards, Azinger was not so lucky. The US captain delayed his selections in the hope of some in-form players shining following the USPGA Championship. None did and he chose his four wild cards based on the rankings rather anything more inspiring.

On the face of it, much is in the European’s favour. They have four rookies while the US team have six. Padraig Harrington is the only European Major winner. The US have four. Harrington has won three of the last six Majors. The last time a member of the US team won one was 2006 – Phil Mickelson at the Masters.

Oh and the US team are missing World No.1 Tiger Woods who is absent due to injury. He will also not make an appearance at Valhalla. And while the TV networks and sponsors might not be overly pleased with this, Azinger and his team will most likely be quietly happy with this decision. Any appearances by the World No.1 at Valhalla would take from the American team and their tough task of seeking to stem the flow of recent European wins.

But there is not doubt that Woods will not be losing any sleep about not being able to tog out in the US colours at Valhalla. He simply doesn’t do team golf. It goes against everything he his strived for. Ryder Cups ultimately count for nothing. As Woods has said before, “how many people remember Nicklaus’ Ryder Cup record?” Enough said.

Previously, this blog spoke about his non-appearance being a positive for the American team, but without natural leaders in the team – can you see Phil Mickelson really try to gee the up his team-mates in the locker room before Friday’s start – it is hard to see where the US team will get their leadership from. There is too much of an impression that they are an unlikely group of individuals.


Harrington. Lee Westwood. Sergio Garcia. All three are the senior players of the European team. Three, who their team-mates – rookies and non-rookies – will all be easily approached to provide guidance, assistance and quiet words if, and when, required. The European team simply gel more easily and play for each other in a much more natural manner. However, don’t expect Harrington and Garcia to play together.

Recently, Ballesteros was hoping the US would win in Valhalla: “I see the Ryder Cup getting very boring because we are beating them so badly. Everybody is losing interest. My heart is always with the Europeans, but my head is with the Americans for the good of the trophy.”

The enigmatic Spaniard’s opinions may have changed of late, but more than the good wishes of Ballesteros will be required for the US team to win for the first time since the battle of Brookline.

Three of this year’s American team were part of that battle. Who’s to say the Azinger will not seek to rekindle that fighting spirit in deepest Kentucky to lead his team to victory at Valhalla. Don’t put the hammer and tongs away just yet.

Open and closed case?

This weekend the Irish Open takes place in the wonderful surroundings of Adare Manor with Irish golfers on a high having won an unprecedented three tournaments in a row, culminating in Peter Lawrie’s dramatic sudden-death win at the Spanish Open ten days ago.

This triumvirate of victories has been a much needed fillip to the event as the usual trumpets and furore in the run-in to this weekend’s action have been conspicuous by their absence.

Padraig Harrington, who broke the 25 year John O’Leary curse by winning last year, returns to defend his title but is one of only 6 of the World’s top 50 golfers who will compete this week. This is an increase on last year’s number!

It is a damning indictment that only two years after the K Club hosted the Ryder Cup, that the Irish Open cannot find a sponsor and that the European Open is no longer hosted by the Kildare golf course.

Corporate Ireland cashed in on the Ryder Cup and no longer see value in an association with golf on the island. And yet, Ireland has more golfers playing on the European Tour than ever before.

Without the attraction of the big name golfers, who increasingly follow the big cheques, sponsors have been slow to back the event. Very much catch-22.

The Irish Open’s fall from grace is a sorry sight. Previously hosted on the links at Portmarnock, Co. Louth, Royal Dublin and as far back as Woodbrook, the event was seen as a warm-up to the British Open. Unfortunately that is no longer the case and it has steadily fallen down the European Tour pecking order and no longer holds that prime position one week before the Major.

Tom Kane must be commended for his attitude to the event but his pockets are only so deep.

We can only hope that another Irish victory this weekend can demonstrate the value of this event to a large corporation, because if not, it might not be long before the Irish Open ceases to exist.