It's all about Balls

Men love balls. That's a fact. Put a ball in front of a man and he'll start kicking it, batting it, tapping it, dribbling it, anything just to get the ball moving.

Men also love watching other men playing with balls. Football, tennis, golf, cricket, as long as there are balls, men will watch it. Probably the only ball-less sport commanding equal attention is athletics. So now you know why events like swimming and gymnastics are not the real crowd pullers at the Olympics and other major games. Introduce a ball in those events and I bet you men will go crazy and snap up tickets in no time.

Whenever there's an EPL match on telly, the mamaks rejoice. They are guaranteed good business if they have a TV tuned in to the match. You'll see rows and rows of boys and men all facing one direction, as if they're worshipping the tv. All eyes glued to the tv, quietly watching until a goal is scored or nearly scored, and then a sudden roar as fans cheer or groan.

These guys have utter devotion for the game. If only they could show a fraction of that devotion to things that really matter, like shopping with their girlfriends/wives, or doing household chores. While they can watch a match in rapt attention for hours, they can't do the same when listening to their partners. They tune out after 5 minutes or so. Their shopping threshold is about an hour or so, after which they will start complaining about how their feet are aching and how they need to rest and get a drink. But they are willing to stand for hours and watch a football match live, if need be.

I wonder what would happen if a Taliban-style government is elected in Malaysia and television/football is banned, and the only 'sport' allowed is congkak. I think the mamaks would stage a revolt...

I think congkak should become an Olympic sport - it has balls after all (marbles are miniature balls what! And yes, I am on a mission to promote congkak at the world level - I'm calling it The Great Congkak Campaign). Malaysia would then be assured of a gold medal, at least until other nations learn to play the game ... and then we'll be trounced, just like what's happening with sepak takraw and badminton.

Can anyone tell me why men are so fascinated with balls?

Till next time, this is Kucing Gatal signing out with a ball-loving Meow.