No doubt change is hard on us humans and the older we get the harder it is to change. It seems change is especially difficult for weary city hall columnists who would rather be outdated and out of touch than risk change.

That seems to be the explanation for Chip Martin's Thursday column "Labatt no venue for soccer."

That and the fact he loves to stir up passionate soccer fans in this city.

But come on, Chip. Get with the times, man.

Just because baseball has traditionally been played at Labatt Park doesn't mean it should always be thus.

What's so difficult about the concept that sports can be played in venues they weren't originally designed for?

Motocross at the Ice House? Basketball at Centennial Hall? Hockey at Ivanhoe? Equestrian competition at the Ontario Arena?

The list goes on.

The last time soccer was regularly played at Labatt Park was in the mid- to late-1980s when four men's teams played home games there.

The pitcher's mound was never a problem as it wasn't on the field of play.

Soccer is the game of the present and future, not only in London but across the country.

Don't soccer players deserve to use the best facilities in the city?

Close to 800,000 people play soccer in Canada. That compares to 520,000 who play hockey and 425,000 baseball players.

But how successful has professional soccer been in this city, you ask?

The London City Soccer Club predates the fateful adventures London has seen with any of its pro baseball teams.

London City was established in 1973 and is still alive and kicking.

The team plays in the Canadian Professional Soccer League and routinely drew comparable numbers to the Monarchs this season.

While the Monarchs and the Canadian Baseball League said they couldn't survive on those numbers, somehow soccer has always found a way to do so.

Leagues such as the Western Ontario Soccer League, which recently drew a crowd of 800 for a regular season game between its two top teams, the Middlesex Masters Soccer League and the London and Area Women's Soccer League continue to expand.

New rec leagues are always popping up.

For a game full of "oddities," as Chip proclaims, it sure has a lot of interest.

A few more facts for you to boot about, Chip, as your research of the jogo bonito (beautiful game) was flawed:

- Officials have cards that let fans know how much injury time will be tacked on to the game.

- In this age of concrete jungles, how can there be too much green?

- Too little scoring, you say? Why is a no-hitter so appreciated in baseball if it's all about offence?

- So what if you can't use your hands?

- So little soccer on television? Chip, throw out those bunny ears. Soccer is routinely shown on Fox Sports World Canada, Sportsnet, TSN, TeleLatino, Rogers and WTSN.

- In all my time covering and playing soccer, I have never seen a fight in the stands and only a couple of times on the field. It's hardly a violent sport.

I've also played baseball over a period of several years.

Each sport has its own merits. It's interesting people who don't know a lot about soccer love to rip it.

Is it jealousy that soccer is the No. 1 sport in the world?

Or is it simply that playing the sport takes endurance, great skill and speed? Things that people sitting at desks all day probably don't possess and so they know they will never be able to run like the wind and kick the ball as hard as they can on a soccer pitch.

Thanks for giving us something to laugh about, Chip.

Soccer fans will be the ones laughing last when their game comes to Labatt Park.