Phil Hughes tragedy reminds us of the inherent dangers in sport

Hippocrates said sport was the preserver of health, writes Brendan O'Brien.

Ralph Waldo Emerson described it as the “bloom and glow” of perfect health. Over two millennia separated those observations, which only goes to show how ingrained is the belief that the games we play are a force for good. And yet, such rhetoric sounds hollow on the back of news that cricketer Phil Hughes has lost his life two days after being struck in the neck by a delivery while batting for South Australia.

Hughes’ tragic passing is another reminder that the sports to which he assign our deepest affections are pastimes which would — let’s be honest here — be described as sheer lunacy were they dreamed up in this modern age of health and safety and not by a bunch of Victorian upper-class Englishmen who saw sport as a means of preparing their young men for the trials and tribulations of ruling their empire and, thus, the world.