Not ‘If’ but ‘When’ – A poem to SA Masters Hockey
I was fortunate enough to get a chance to bend some ears with a presentation at the Team SA dinner on Thursday. It went a little something like this and turned out to be a particularly special hockey moment for me.
Many many years ago I was sitting in the change room with my team ahead of a league game when our world renowned coach whose name I won’t mention- said one sentence that stuck with me. “Briggs you are the shittest player I have ever seen” Now here I stand, representing an extraordinary group of men, appointed by an incredible executive committee and management, talking to some of the best players South Africa has ever produced. It is indeed a privilege and makes everything worth it!
I know many other players have had challenges or setbacks in their journey to this point and in light of this I wanted to find a meaningful and motivational message for my squad and thought perhaps this might resonate with some of you too. I sincerely hope it does.
I have penned a version of a famous poem called ‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling, some of you may remember him as a classmate. He published the poem in 1910.
On the eve of the World Cup opening ceremony my version is titled not “If” but “When” and it is dedicated to my team and of course absent friends and family:
When
When you keep your calm when all around you
Are losing theirs and turning to you
When you can trust your selection when others doubt you
And still make allowance for their doubting too
When you can be benched and not be tired of being benched
Or being underappreciated, for appreciation lies within
Or being overlooked, don’t give way to negative thoughts
And yet don’t be too good, nor think yourself too wise
When you can dream of this World Cup – and not make dreams your master
When you can play in this World Cup – and not make hockey your only aim
When you can meet with Success and Failure
And treat those two imposters just the same;
When you can bear to hear the truths that are spoken
Twisted not by your uncertainties or your mind playing tricks,
Or watch the goals you have sacrificed so much for, broken,
And still start again and build them up with worn-out sticks
When you can make one heap of all your hockey successes and winnings
And risk it all on one performance in a World Cup game
And lose, and start again from scratch as a new beginning
And never breathe a word about your loss or pain
When you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your team long after they are gone
And to hold on when there is nothing left in you
Except the will in you that says to them “Hold on!”
When you can talk with teammates and keep your virtue
Or play with the greats – and not lose your common touch
When neither poor performances or losses can hurt you
When all teammates count on you, but none too much
When you can fill the unforgiving match-defining minute
With sixty seconds of putting your body on the line
Yours is one of the South Africa teams, everyone and everything in it
And, what is more, you’ll be one of a select few, for all time
Thank you and good luck to all the teams