It's only a game but……...

When asked about the pressure of playing cricket, Australian all-rounder and former wartime pilot Keith Miller was dismissive, "Pressure is having a Messerschmidt up your arse. This is just a bloody game".  That might be  the kind of gung-ho attitude that we demand of our sports stars but the truth is that no sport has such a shocking record of mental illness than does first class cricket. In last night's post Test defeat interview Alastair Cook did not look or sound like a well man. We wish him well of course but perhaps it's time for a first-class cricketer to come out and stand up for the victims of all employment centred stress related illness.