Does trash talk during the game benefit a team?

Yes

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by David Gasch

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The inexperienced viewer observes what appears to be merely a constant offering of crude language and inappropriate comments, which for some insecure athletes is true, but for the most part the view from the eyes and mind of the athlete provides a different opinion.

As a person who recently played football for a high school I have been on the field in the midst of the fire and have seen what truly happens. Competition has a positive affect on those who use it wisely.

On the field athletes find themselves in a world that is almost separate from the audience and everything else. The opponents are obvious enemies, but they are not hated. Athletes often feel a need to overcome and even destroy the opposing team, but generally respect them. Even when against a certain team, there is still a certain amount of bonding that occurs. This is why many guys enjoy football as much as they do.

With this being said I must assure you that the trash talk is not always a tool to create a negative atmosphere or hurt the other. It actually possesses several positive influences.

Have you ever noticed in sports when an athlete says something the audience may view as disrespectful, the other smiles? It can take the form as a challenge. Between the trash talker and the "victim," there is now a personal competition within a competition. All guys love competition.

It is not a bad competition. This competition will almost provide a bond between the two- a pact to push the other to their utmost best. Every guy feels a need to prove himself.

Trash talk also helps adrenaline rise. Adrenaline plays a leading role in sports. It is a tool that can make or break a game, and it is a necessity. Trash talk jump starts this weapon inside of veins and allows an athletes' motivation to increase.

There are athletes who use trash talk as a final resort as a weapon because they are desperate and fears that they have no other method of finishing the game victoriously. Also, there will always be those who are plagued with a horrible temper and cannot think of any better way to equally anger another than to trash talk. These people, however, are digging their own grave by giving the other a reason to perform better.

Trash talk is not altogether a bad thing t have in a game, and often helps considering the hope that the participants are mature and smart enough to use it positively and to their own advantage.

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