"... but above all win"? Is that right?

Something about the Basford* blog (see below) has been bothering me... and its the header.

"Play with the spirit of the game. Enjoy, make lasting friendships, but above all win!!!"

There is a degree of tongue-in-cheekness about this, obviously, but even so it has had me thinking... "but above all win"... is winning really the most important thing?

I grant you that I may be quite terribly out-of-date here but frankly I would not even put it in the top three. I will admit that for professional sportspeople winning really IS number one. It is, after all, their job and livelihood - but its also true that, when it comes down to it, many professional sportspeople do not truly enjoy playing their sports anything like as much as you do. You doubt that? Well look at how many stop playing as soon as the money disappears!

Professional sport is a different world with different values - values that dominate the sporting media and therefore infect our game. But that does not make them right. What we play is amateur sport - moreover junior amateur sport - and to my view to say that winning here is the most important thing is plain wrong. After all, for every winner there must be at least one loser - but does that mean the "loser" has failed? Did we "fail" yesterday merely because we lost the match? I think from all your reactions the answer is clearly no - you were all proud of your performance, and justifiably so.

So what is important, where does "winning" come? My personal view is that its around about fourth - even fifth - behind...

1. Participation. Just simply being there, being part of something bigger than you, being part of a team and taking on the challenges that flow from that. It means giving up stuff sometimes - like your entire Sunday - and it can be hard work (ie. getting out of bed at 6am when everyone else is having a lie-in) but its always worth it.
2. Playing as well as you can. There is a satisfaction that comes from knowing that you have put everything you can into something - that you have tried as hard as you could - regardless of the actual outcome - yesterday was a prime example. Equally a win achieved without trying too hard often seems to lack something.
3. Self-improvement. Kind of flows from 2. Simply getting better at something, taking on a new and higher challenge, and succeeding in it. Playing your first game, making that first tackle, working in a new position, running faster, kicking further.
4. "Making friends", as the Basford blog has it. Being the team (and club) that people remember playing for all the good reasons, and want to play again. Its a truism, but worth repeating that results are often forgotten after a few weeks - but reputations can last a lifetime.
5. Winning comes in around here I think. Its important - you need to play to win otherwise there's no point - but more important than any of the above? No - well, I don't think so.

As sporting values go I think this is what is described as "Corinthian", and much derided, but in the end I think it guides my views on sport and - I think (partly as a result?)- our team's. In the end what is most important to you - a box full of medals or a circle full of friends?

[*And no, I'm not having a go at Basford here, just using their published "mission statement" as a jumping off point to a wider discussion - and one Phil, Gavin et al may even agree with.]