A LOT of things didn’t make sense to me as a 16-year-old in 1997, like Biggie Small’s Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems.
I mean, shouldn’t money solve problems and not create them?
Well, road tennis has shown me otherwise.
And clearly the biggest problem right now is the absence of a players’ association.
I think both Dwayne Lynch and Rachel Smith are finding this out the hard way after being forced to watch this Massy United Clash Of The Titans from the sidelines without anyone to represent their causes.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting the Professional Road Tennis Association (PRTA) is wrong, or even right, for banning the duo over not wearing the given sponsored clothing on court.
But without a union then these players will always be subject to the whims and fancies of the PRTA with regard to whatever rules or decisions they make.
It’s just another area that shows me we don’t really understand pro sports because we want to bring amateur behaviours to a professional setup.
I don’t think CEO Dale Clarke would ever deny that his PRTA is a money-making entity which attracts major sponsorship for profit.
And that’s his right.
However, it’s also the players’ right to form a bargaining body to address their issues because let’s face it; without them Clarke can’t make those profits.
Just look at professional leagues like the NBA and the NFL, who have high-profiled unions that enter in collective bargaining agreements with those associations to protect the players’ interests.
That’s because the players are the ones who are the real money earners.
The NBA can’t thrive without stars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and James Harden.
The NFL isn’t a multi-billion dollar industry minus Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Antonio Brown and Richard Sherman.
So they make sure they’re entitled to a particular share of revenue and playing conditions that are suitable for them due to their earning power.
But that doesn’t currently happen within the PRTA.
Oddly enough international tennis, the direct relative of road tennis in my mind, doesn’t have a players’ union, although the ATP and WTA are supposed to represent the players despite the clear conflict of interest.
Yet players like Lynch would have a case if a body was representing him over this issue where he was banned for wearing his own sponsored gear during warm-ups.
Yes, Clarke needs to guard the interests of his sponsors, who have paid top dollar for exclusive mileage and the protection from ambush marketing.
On the flip side, though, Lynch can argue his branded clothing doesn’t directly compete with Clarke’s insurance sponsors.
A lower-level player like Lynch also needs to find a way to generate money considering he won’t ever appear in the money rounds while there is no current revenue split of the sponsorship.
That is also something that needs addressing by a players’ union.
No one is denying that the PRTA has given these players more prize money than they’re accustomed to getting, but without a bargaining agreement the players won’t always know how much money these tournaments are bringing in.
Do you think Massy United Insurance would enter a sponsorship agreement with the PRTA of $120 000 over three years if the Clash Of The Titans didn’t feature Barbados’ best road tennis players?
And just in case you still don’t think they are entitled to a share in profits then just take a look at the crowd numbers when certain big names aren’t on court.
Antonio “Lil Man” Daniel and Julian “Michael Jackson” White once played on the same night in the preliminaries of the Monarchs Of The Court and that led to a full house at the Cable Wireless courts in Wildey.
Just one night later at that same venue two women’s drew less than two-thirds of the previous crowd.
That’s why I was so surprised when none of the others banded with Daniel over his previous demands for appearance fees.
After all, international tennis tournaments do such for Roger Federer.
I’m not saying the PRTA is in a position to pay those appearance fees to our road tennis players, but they sure as hell won’t find out without a union.
They’ll be in a better position to fight disciplinary rulings and make possible changes to any playing rules and conditions they may find unsuitable.
A players’ union has to be the way to go and it doesn’t make sense to me why they don’t have one.
Even as a 36-year-old in 2017.
