THROUGHOUT Dublin there are men and women who give up their valuable time and energy to encourage young people to take up sport.
In all weathers – and often at the expense of their own family life – they provide an invaluable free resource to our youth.
In doing so, these volunteers are nothing short of local heroes. In the more deprived parts of the city, they are providing crucial diversionary services aimed at keeping kids away from drugs and crime.
Sport is not just about competing – it’s about instilling confidence and generating hope. It teaches our children the value of teamwork and shows them that hard work, dedication and perseverance can pay off.
These are not just sporting skills – they are life skills.
Kids who play soccer aspire to be like their heroes in the Premiership. They wear the jerseys of their favourite teams, emblazoned with the name and number of their chosen footballer.
They play their little hearts out at training sessions and in league matches in the hope that some day they will be spotted by a talent scout and offered a trial for a top UK team.
That’s why the Luis Suarez biting incident was so serious. Young people hold up this guy as a footballing hero. They all want to play like him; they want to earn the type of money he earns; they want the adulation and fame that comes with it all.
So what message does it send out to our kids when the likes of Suarez behaves like a violent animal? Will they think it’s ok to do that in their next Under 9s match on Saturday? Unfortunately, some of them might.
Violence in sport will always happen, despite the best efforts of sporting bodies. The GAA has a very strict code of behaviour that is available on its website and distributed to clubs.
And while some GAA events have been marred by the violent actions of a small number of individuals, there are serious sanctions in place to deal with any such transgressions.
At grassroots level, be it in soccer, rugby or Gaelic games, our volunteer coaches and committee members do their best to stamp out aggression on the pitch.
But people like Suarez make their job that little bit more difficult. Banning him for 10 matches may not be enough to undo the damage he has done to football’s reputation in the eyes of our children.