My column will be a little different this week.
No snippets, no trivia, no subtle digs (not even at the Meikle family members who support Old Boys, beaten by Valley last weekend), no birthday of the week, no summary of the last seven days.
Today, at the risk of boring you and exposing myself to those who scoff (sometimes with entirely reasonable arguments) that games are for children, I am simply going to list the reasons I love sport.
I have been a sports reporter for 15 years.
Some days, that seems like a long time. Others, I still feel like the rookie.
I was what you might call an accidental sports reporter. I was not a diehard fan who thought getting paid to write about sport would be fun and glamorous; apart from my love of football, my life did not revolve around sport.
Red Smith, the great American sportswriter, said it for me: ''I never felt that I was a bug-eyed fan as such. I wasn't one of those who dreamed of being a sportswriter and going around the country travelling with ball players and getting into the games.''
I became a sports fan BECAUSE of sports reporting. Because covering the events and meeting the people involved and learning more about sport opened my eyes to its potential for romance, drama and a special sort of feel-good factor. Because the buzz, for a lifelong voracious reader, in compiling my own stories was unexpectedly delicious.
The reason I have been contemplating this sort of stuff is because I'm not sure I have ever felt so disillusioned with sport.
What non-sports fans don't realise is many of us do have our eyes wide open. We know there is darkness in our world, and scandal, and obscene economics, and a fair amount of pointlessness, and myriad other reasons to feel disenchanted and disgusted. We recognise that, but retain a belief that the good outweighs the bad.
Lately, though, my level of disillusionment has grown.
There was the biggest sports doping scandal in history - the downfall of Lance Armstrong, a man I (very naively) desperately wanted to believe was clean.
The financial implosion of the Otago rugby union.
Boxing's descent into farce.
The relentless commercialisation of the All Blacks and expansion of the rugby calendar.
The circus elements of twenty20 cricket.
The response to the All Whites winning the Halberg Award.
Finally, the story last week of an Auckland rugby league coach who dragged his 9-year-old son on to a field and ordered him to punch another child. That sickened me to levels beyond anything I have experienced in sport.
And yet ... there is still something about sport that keeps my blood warm and my spirits high.
I HAVE to believe there is something worthwhile, something good, at the soul of sport.
Otherwise, what the heck am I doing in this job?I don't want to hate sport. I want to love it, to cherish its goodness and to scrutinise (but not be overwhelmed by) its badness, to remain a fan at the same time as being a reporter, to both put it in perspective and allow myself to succumb to its charms and its capacity for pure joy.
Hence, this list. The reasons - well, some of them - I still love sport, and feel lucky to be in this job.
1. Ben Smith
We'll start with an easy one. A one-school, one-club, one-province, one-franchise rugby player, who is a super talent and a top bloke.
2. LeBron James
The most physically impressive athlete in world sport.
3. The 1998 Otago netball team
My girls. Unbeaten as both the Rebels and Otago across two full competitions, in my first year as a sports reporter. Loaded with skill, flair and pluck.
4. The underdog
So many of the great sports stories are about the underdog. Cliche be damned.
5. The people
From the athletes to the coaches, the administrators to the fans, and even fellow members of the media. Todd Marshall, Leonard King, Des Smith, Jill Johnson, Mike Reggett, Brent Edwards, Bill Trewern, Dave Campbell, Lois Muir, Warren Lees, the late Kevin ''Mumbles'' McQueen, Malcolm Jones, Dianne Hollands, Kees Meeuws, Josh Blackie, Colin Jackson, Hayden Finch, Kereyn Smith, Richard Murray, Paul Allison . . . and too many others to mention.
6. First XV rugby
Given unhealthy priority at some schools, certainly. But there is still plenty that is great about that level of rugby.
7. Club rugby
In town or country, it's marvellous.
8. Literature
The most under-rated of sport's attractions. Great writing - in books, newspapers, magazines and online - takes sport to new levels. It's out there. You just have to read the right stuff.
9. Brad Thorn
Magnificent.
10. Bringing people together
For all that sport can tear people apart (see: Celtic v Rangers), it has an unrivalled ability to unite communities, to foster camaraderie, to instil a sense of togetherness.
11. Drew Magary
The funniest, most cutting voice of the new generation of sportswriters. Occasionally shocking, often hilarious, Magary's best work is done for the Deadspin website.
12. Steven Adams
Not sure I have ever been so excited about a young New Zealand athlete.
13. Football
My first and strongest sporting love. A fine example of a sport that is besieged by unpleasantness - particularly in the financial and over-reaction-to-being-fouled sectors - but has too much beauty and grace to be overwhelmed. Is there something essentially odd about a New Zealander being so attached to a club (Liverpool) on the other side of the world? Of course. But I will never walk alone.
14. Lists and statistics
There is NOTHING like sport for producing fascinating numbers and endless debates over the top five this or the top 10 that.
15. Black Caviar
For me, a horse that transcended racing.
16. ESPN documentaries
Watch them all, if you get a chance.
17. Lydia Ko
One special young Korean Kiwi.
18. Junior hockey
No aggro, no umpire abuse, no brawling. Just kids running around and having fun.
19. Mark Dickel
Just watch him. Watch what he does on court. He sees things others do not. The way he plays basketball is as pure as sport gets.
20. History
The Originals. The 1956 Springbok Tour. The 1982 All Whites. Jack Lovelock. Babe Ruth. Bert Sutcliffe. Jordan, Bird, Magic, Wilt and Kareem. The glory days of boxing and the glorious eras of golf. Soak it all up.
21. Spin bowling
Fast bowling is sexier but the spinners have the real magic. And Shane Warne, for all his baggage, was the master.
22. Opportunities
For women, for people with disabilities, for kids who don't want to play only rugby or cricket, for people struggling to pay the bills.
23. Friday Night Lights
The book, the movie, the TV show, the absolute essence of sport.
24. Gaming
No, seriously. Sports gamers like me enhance our love of football/basketball/gridiron/tennis by playing them in virtual worlds. I don't see Fifa, for example, as merely a video game; it's an immersive, continuous role-playing experience.
25. Banter
With my Uncle Ross, with my colleagues, with my nemesis at The Southland Times, with anyone willing to share good-natured ribbing about our favourite teams.
26. Unpredictability
Good sport is like a good book or good television - you really don't know what is going to happen next.
27. My son
Eli turns 5 next month. He's a bit like me - tall, cheeky and fond of electronics. We also share a deep admiration for All Black captain Richie McCaw.
''Born in Oamaru, just like Dad,'' never fails to impress. Eli thinks Richie Me-caw (sounds like Meikle, I guess) is a legend. Literally. He asked recently if Richie was ''a man in real life''. Eli has a poster of Richie on his wall, points out Richie on his All Black Weet-Bix tin every morning, and tells me that Richie is the All Black captain because he is the strongest man in New Zealand. I like that, for my son, the All Blacks are not a brand, or a cash cow. They are people, embodied by the great Richie Me-caw.
• What are your reasons for loving sport? Email me your lists.
