Book of football

xiv
INTRODUCTION
Much is made of an unbeaten record, and as time
goes on, judging by unmistakable signs of the times,
more will yet be made. . But my young readers will
be well advised to pay as little attention as possible
to the whole subject of Records. The. making and
breaking of Records has done games untold damage.
Games, and especially football and cricket, are quite
good enough in themselves without players for ever
striving to perform something that has never been
done before. The very essence of Record making is
selfishness, and selfishness and the true Spirit of Games
are entirely antagonistic, and always will be. There-
fore do I counsel with all the vigour of which my pen
is capable that every boy should always Play the
Game to the best possible limit of his power, for the
good of his school and his school teams, and the
physical and mental good of himself, disregarding
from first to last selfish achievement, trickery, and
anything and everything which his conscience tells
him is, in the words that are best understanded of a
cricketing nation, " Not Cricket." By these means,
and these means only, will he derive the fullest enjoy-
ment and benefit out of the healthy sport which is
known as the Game of Football.