It’s hard to get a sense of normality in these difficult times. We don’t have to face the commute at the beginning and end of every day; we don’t have to put up with the inane chat from colleagues that we pretend to like; we don’t have weekends spent in the pub with friends watching sports to look forward to, or even the prospect of going to the pub anytime soon, and with London potentially approaching a lockdown it does feel like one of those apocalyptic films that I hate watching and it’s rather unnerving to say the least.
For me the absence of sport has made a massive difference. It is my way of escaping the day to day norms and seriousness of life, and I also like being part of club. Whether that’s with my local hockey club that I play with every week, or if it’s part of the supporter’s community for my different teams, I have been feeling empty without them. Despite everyone coming together to fight against coronavirus all over the world, it’s a different solidarity to watching the England v Ireland Six Nations game sat next to two of your best friends, one English and one Irish, with a pub full of supporters shouting for your team to win (which they did - sorry, had to throw that in there!). I guess you could say I’m missing the rivalry and the conversation that comes with sport just as much as the camaraderie.
It’s also a loss of routine. I no longer have training on Thursday night, a match on Saturday and any other sports to put in my calendar to watch. My whole diary has been emptied and seeing a blank diary is a horrible feeling of uneasiness. I like being kept busy and having things to look forward to, and so without structure, future plans or any idea when this will change it has made things hard for me, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.
I know this all sounds very selfish when people are dying all over the world, companies are closing down and close friends are in self-isolation, however as much as sport doesn’t really matter in the wider landscape, it does matter, and talking about it is important. Sports channels like Sky and BT, podcasts and radio shows, journalists, players and fans all over the world are suffering as a result of coronavirus and with no end date it is a scary prospect for everyone involved in the industry and wider network. When you watch a sports match either live, or with friends in a pub, you forget how many people are affected outside the game itself. The pub landlord, the burger joint chef, merchandise salesmen, ticketing and hospitality employees, bus and train drivers, all of whom are now losing out on either time working or money coming in because of these cancellations. It is of course no-one's fault but it is still an issue that needs to be spoken about and a real concern in the current environment.
Despite currently living in a world of unknowns, we have to focus on the positives, and this emptiness will go away at some point and sport will come back into our lives and will be welcomed with open arms by everyone. However, for the moment we have to stay safe, stay indoors and get the Subbuteo or Owzthat out of the cupboard for some old-fashioned fun (and arguments…)!
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