We are all remembered by how we played the game

Years after he hung up his boots, the late Brendan Mulholland was asked to assess himself as a footballer.

“I wasn’t the greatest full-back,” said Big Brendan, “but I kept a very clean square.”

Men of a certain vintage will understand exactly what that means. Those who played alongside Big Brendan and saw him in action would cheerfully testify that it was a most accurate description. That would please Brendan, and surely there is no better tribute. To those who care about these things, it’s extremely important to play the game as we would like to be remembered. Because contrary to the popular perception, we are not judged on what we win, we are remembered for how we played the game.