Sporting activities are essentially modified forms of hunting behavior. Viewed biologically, the modern footballer is (1) as a member of a disguised hunting pack. His killing weapon has turned into a harmless football and his prey into a goal-mouth. If his aim is (2) and he scores a goal, he enjoys the hunter’s triumph of killing his prey.
To understand how this (3) has taken place we must briefly look (4) our ancient ancestors. They spent over a million years evolving as co-operative hunters. Their very (5) depended on success in the hunting-field. Under this pressure their whole way of life, even their bodies, became (6) changed. They became chasers, runners, jumpers, aimers, throwers (7)prey-killers. They co-operate as skillful male-group attackers.
Then, about ten thousand years ago, after this (8) long formative period of hunting for food, they became farmers. Their improved intelligence, so vital to their old hunting life, (9) put to a new use—that of penning, controlling and domesticating their prey. The food was there on the farms, awaiting their needs. The risks and uncertainties of (10) were no longer essential for survival.