TROUBLE AT THE TOP..

It seems that it`s not just in politics that one`s naive and trusting faith in human nature is constantly disappointed. I`m used to politicians being dishonest, deceitful, disingenuous and all the other adjectives they so richly deserve. But I never imagined that I would lose as much faith in top level sport as I am right now.

In recent weeks there have been revelations in Rugby Union about the use of blood capsules which have brought shame on the sport, on Harlequins in particular (even though it is suggested that the practice is more widespread) and has brought the hitherto distinguished career of Dean Richards to an undignified end. In horse racing - a `sport` I know virtually nothing about - champion jockey Kieron Fallon has just saddled up again after a long suspension for some dodgy riding. We have seen the shrill tirade launched on an unsuspecting line judge by one of the Williams sisters (I never know which is which and I have long suspected they might be one and the same anyway) and in top level football we witness the weekly fol-de-rols of diving forwards, whinging managers and inept administration (FIFA and Eduardo anyone?) whilst athletics has long battled against the twin thereats posed by drugs and transgenderism.

The body wracking pastime of professional snooker has also had its problems and suspicions and now we see that the rarified world of Formula One motor racing might well have been the scene for one of the most ludicrous attempts at winning at all costs that any sport has so far witnessed.

Ludicrous because if it is the case that Nelson Piquet Junior was instructed to crash his car on purpose in order to gain an advantage for a team mate, then how much more public and blatant can the alleged offence have been? Now I have to confess that I have never been in the slightest bit interested in motor racing - to me, it is a noisy, smelly, environmentally-hostile, pointless, repetitive cavalcade - but I guess some people like it. And for them, then like almost all the other sports, to have their faith in the inherent nature of fair competition destroyed is a shattering blow for their love of the game and for their commitment to it.

So I`m beginning to wonder where the true nature of sport might still reside - where the game is respected, where the competition is fair and where the players and the supporters combine to uphold the spirit of the game.

In truth, with the notable exception of golf and with respect to admirable `minor` sports like table tennis, barbed wire hurdling and synchronised basket weaving, I can find some solace in my old friend cricket. I cannot believe that there is any serious malpractice going on at the moment that would tarnish my faith in the game at the highest level in this country, otherwise, for example, Australia might not be 5-0 up in the current seven match one day series; 3-2 might be a bit suspicious though. Okay, there might have been the odd ball tampering, the occasional brush with the laws, but nothing to compare with the suspicions that have surrounded Briatore, Piquet, Fallon, the snooker boys, Harlequins, leading athletes and all the rest. It`s just not cricket, old chap.

UPDATE : Australia stuffed England again last evening, so it`s now 6-0 in the seven match series. Surely it can`t be a fix.