[karomata]

Only in FIRST can thowing matches be strategically gainful, sometime it can be worth it to throw a match. It all depends on how you want to play the game, if you want to be ethical and moral, following the core values of gracious professionalism and other various beliefs common in FIRST. Or you can be the diehard win all the matches teams, who will be 1st seed in champs after going 32-0-0 all season, then will pick an indestructible alliance and will win it all with great success and fludity based around complex strategies that always win but may not be moral at times. Or you can be both. You can do very well and still be moral and ethical. A great example of this is 1114. They are graciously professional on and off the field, and have pursued all the FIRST core values while being very successful and have helped other team reach their level while helping themselves reach success.

Although FIRST would like to see all the teams competing compete morally, they cannot stop the competitive fighting spirit many of us possess, and it drives many people to success in their own way.

This brings up a famous quote in my mind, I have absolutely no idea who first said it, probably somebody before recorded history, but its meaning still holds today:

"It's not about if you win or lose, it's how you play the game."


However you choose to play the game, good luck to all teams that are still competing!