No dispute , Formartine are going through as rough a patch as they have for three years or more.
They are still just in contention for a finish in the top two or three in the league which would be about in line with budget, but they could well see this current slide develop into a free fall that propels them down into the lower half of the league.
I can’t see much chance of new players coming in this season so we need to get the best from what we have. With no trophies within reach it is entirely down to the commitment and professionalism of current players.
In the sense that they all get paid for what they do, they are professionals, but do wages alone really define a professional?
A professional is marked out by the standards he sets, his commitment to who hires him and the capacity to give his level best whatever the rate, whatever the circumstances.
A professional hurts when he loses and is self- critical when he contributes to a defeat. He doesn’t walkaway care-free when beaten any more than he blames others for his own shortcomings.
A mercenary on the other hand, is a hireling who is motivated solely by the money he picks up and who has no personal or professional identification with the cause he serves. He may like to win but with little or no emotional substance invested in that cause, handles defeat in a laid back fashion.
I think some mercenaries believe they are professionals but no true professional ever sees himself as just a mercenary.
The next few weeks will show which of Formartine’s “professionals” are actually mercenaries – hopefully none, possibly a handful – and which are the true professionals the club needs to turn things round.