Bernie Fratto

Speaking
of
Sports 

by
Bernie 
Fratto


Don’t Discount
Seniors

5/24/04
As you watch 40-year-old Randy Johnson throw a perfect game, 38-year-old Reggie Miller hit the game winning shot, or 40-year-old Roger Clemens dominate the National League, you have to smile.

They’re doing it with… experience. Sure, these guys still have great athleticism but the thing that really sustains them is the fact they know what their doing. In other words, their experience is golden. Listen to them talk, and they have a lot to say. They’ve already been where a lot of people would like to go, and they know how they got there, and how they manage to stay there, even though in the sporting world, they’re elder statesmen, or “seniors.”

When the Novi Wildcat baseball team takes the field Tuesday June 1st to open District play, the real hoopla will begin and experience should matter. Novi has a roster of seniors and in a game for all the marbles, would most likely start 8 seniors.

Senior leadership can and does matter. Ostensibly, their older and more mature, physically. Typically, seniors have perhaps played more games against more meaningful competition. Success from other sports will factor in. This team features players from past District champion teams including other sports like football, basketball and hockey.

So, when the lights go on and the stakes are raised, their past accomplishments can serve as anchor as they all know, “they’ve been there before.”

Simply put, they’ve got experience. All the talent, desire, and ability in the world can sometimes realize their match when they get into the ring with experience.

Just ask Johnson, Miller, and Clemens.

And just ask the Novi Wildcats. When it comes to experience, they’ve got it in spades.

… And you can never discount that!
 

(c) 2004 Novi Information Network
www.novi.org

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Bernie Fratto
is a freelance writer, radio personality, and motivational speaker.  His passion for sports comes in part from his experience as a former Cincinnati Red farm- hand.  "Behind every sports story lies the hearts and minds of real human beings" said Fratto.  "These athletic endeavors often serve as a metaphor for the game we call life."

Bernie is also the voice of Novi Wildcat Hockey and host of Wildcat Face-off, a local radio program dedicated to youth sports in Novi.