Heroes? I don’t think so.

Ah, I think I probably know who is swoony in the boxing field.
Lets just say I look forward to the weigh in..

Oh I do like boxing MissA (well one in particular)

Swoon.....

I agree about peas, I could eat them at every meal. they are bright green, reasonably cheap, look good, go with most meals etc. Of course they are heroes !

My DGC eat them frozen (only one or two not great handfuls) and play a how long to melt in the mouth game. Not that i ever join in or anything

Yes, the team did well to get so far in the World Cup, but they are out now. I would like to turn on a programme (any programme ) which did not have it as the main story. Even Jeremy Vine this morning invited listeners to phone in to praise the team. By all means feel proud of them but a bit of balance please. It is being done to death.
The people who were involved in rescuing the boys from the cave are heroes. Lives were in danger and it was a tough physical challenge, but they did it. It trivialises such bravery to call footballers heroes.

The use of the word “hero” is frequently mis-used.
I don’t think it’s wrong to have news about the World Cup at all, we all need cheerful news as well as more sombre news, but I think calling footballers “heroes” for doing their job of kicking a ball around a grass pitch is rather silly - what they are doing is hardly heroic. Skilled, yes, entertaining, yes, but heroic?
I don’t think Katek was saying that news programmes should only cover serious subjects. My understanding from her post was that she objected to the way the word “hero* was applied to footballers.

Well, I think peas are unsung heroes.
They go with anything, taste great with pickle or gravy, and get little recognition.

gilly
I only like boxing. Watching, that is. Of course!

hero avocado

I hate tennis, and find it boring as hell. Could probably name half a dozen players and recognise maybe 4 of them. So not to me MissA

hero artichoke!

These days people use "hero" for all sorts of things. In a cooking show I heard the commentator saying "the hero of this dish is the artichoke". Who'd have thought that a vegetable could be a "hero" ?

Go gillybob, keep up the defence. If folks have no / zero interest in football, why bother their heads with reading about it. If its on the front page, or the first news item, just don't read/listen. I'm not interested in cricket, or even in Wimbledon. I find it's easy to switch off my ears and interest when it's on the tv or radio and I don't read about it in the newspapers.

Yes its; the World Cup. Football is a sport enjoyed all over the world. These young men, their good coaches and manager have achieved more than any other English football team in 18 years. That's to be celebrated. The other thing to celebrate is the way they sang the National Anthem, their behaviour on and off the pitch. It's brought huge groups together, with a shared excitement and interest. What's not to like.
Come on England, you're coming home to a positive welcome by almost all the country.

Yes they lost a match . They did not lose the world cup.

I know you are dying for me to say it so......

What is not qualifying then Annie ?

Do you think tennis players are heroes, gilly?

But you could say that about any sport, well anything at all, to be fair Katek. I have zero interest in Tennis (among other things) but appreciate that others love it. Can't see a problem. Like it or not, this world cup has lifted the spirits for many in the UK , okay before I get my head bit off, England . I am sad that its almost over but I will still watch the play off and the final.

It’s still just a game and they still lost the match. Of course they lost, that’s why all the fans are devastated! Winners will be the team that wins the final and comes first.

I think its a vast exaggeration to call them heroes.

1st is winning, 3rd or 4th is losing gilly

I didn’t say that gilly, I’ve no problems with all aspects of news being covered both good and bad. We need a balance. What I object to is the terminology being used. Yes, it’s the World Cup, but not everybody in the world attaches the same level of importance to a football tournament

Yes 3rd or 4th IN THE WORLD ! Annie. How can you say that is losing?

I think this conversation is pointless.

It is quite hard for people with zero interest in football to grasp what all the fuss is about. I am afraid that for me it has all been more than a little OTT.

I'm all for good news - but apparently this was not good news because it seems that they lost the match.

Yes they lost the semi final gilly, one more match will position them third or fourth , football got lost on its way home

What did they lose Annie ?

Oh yes the semi final of the WORLD CUP. Not a bloomin' Sunday league game on the local rec.

So the news programs should only cover very serious subjects then Katek nothing upbeat at all. Okay I get it.

Just because a news program covers a happy, good news story it doesn't mean that tragic events around the world are less important. We all deserve a tiny bit of joy in our lives. Crikey knows mine is full of sh*t most days and the football has lifted my spirits.

What is heroic about kicking a ball and losing a match?

Seems there demands for this football team to be given a hero’s welcome home, they lost, disappointing for their supporters yes, but they did lose.

I am not a football fan but have admired the way these young men have worked together as a team to get as far as they have BUT they are not heroes, they are well paid to do something they love. The men who rescued the children from the cave are unpaid volunteers risking their lives to help others - they are real heroes. By all means give the returning footballers a rousing reception but let's keep it in perspective.