Eddie Betts’ act of sportsmanship toward Heath Shaw shows there’s still plenty of love in the game

OVER fourteen seasons and countless epic encounters, Heath Shaw hasn’t given Eddie Betts an inch but on Saturday a great act of sportsmanship showed there’s still plenty of love in the game.

OVER fourteen seasons and countless epic encounters, Heath Shaw hasn’t given Eddie Betts an inch.

On Saturday night as Shaw’s knee wrenched sideways in a potentially season-ending injury, it was the Adelaide superstar he was trying to beat to the Sherrin.

Yet Betts didn’t need a Spirit of the Game agreement to know what to do next.

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In a year where we have seen so many needless tummy taps and off-the-ball punches, his response was one of the game’s great acts of sportsmanship.

As Shaw was being loaded onto a motorised stretcher Betts made a beeline to his old sparring partner.

As Betts told the Herald Sun, his message was simple: “Hey old boy, hope it’s not too serious”.

Eddie Betts consoles Heath Shaw on Saturday night.

The GWS defender was in so much pain he refused to let go of his knee, his posterior cruciate ligament damaged enough to need six weeks of rest.

But when Betts approached, the pair clasped hands in a momentary gesture that said everything about his character in a year where the Crows’ have rarely had things go their way.

Shaw told the Herald Sun that he had thanked Betts on Sunday for a small act that still spoke volumes of the mateship that can still occur between AFL rivals.

“We’ve had some good battles over the years, right back to our days at Carlton and Collingwood before we both moved on to the Crows and Giants,’’ he said.

“It’s probably more of a friendship than a rivalry in some ways between us.

“There’s a bit of mutual respect between all of us older guys across the comp who are still trying to have an impact. He’s one of the best small forwards I’ve played on, if not the best.

Heath Shaw battles Eddie Betts for the ball. Picture: Sarah Reed

“I appreciated the gesture from him on Saturday night and sent him a text on Sunday to say thanks.”

Shaw was in scans on Monday, contracted for next season but desperate to get back for another Giants finals campaign.

The pair both debuted in 2005, and over the years Betts has learned that relationships are as important in football as success.

“It’s never good seeing someone injured and he texted me saying I really appreciate you coming over and showing me some love,” Shaw said.

“It’s always good to match up on him and we have been doing it for 14 years now.

“It’s always fun playing on him because he is always so vocal towards his own teammates, not the opposition.

“To see him go down like that, when we are probably in the later stages of our careers, it’s no good and I thought I would come over and say, “Hey old boy, hope it’s not too serious”.

Betts has endured a weekend where he has felt “sick in the guts” to see Adelaide crash out of finals contention and yet he knows many players are so much worse off than him.

“Look at Alex Johnson from Sydney. He has had five knee recos and to see him do the opposite knee, that just breaks your heart, it just breaks the AFL world’s heart.

“Seeing that, footy is a cruel sport. It shows you how tough it is. We are just human.

“Footy is only a game, you end up caring more about the welfare of players.”

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Originally published as Eddie Betts’ act of sportsmanship toward Heath Shaw shows there’s still plenty of love in the game