This is the title Sydney Swans ­premiership-winning coach Paul Roos used for his book and I have often echoed the ­sentiment since first coming across it.

And as a general rule, I endorse this line, which is no surprise from a sports journalist, weekend warrior and all-round sports fan, but it has spoken volumes in the current ­climate.

Looking back this week on the year that was, sport has been in the headlines more often than not.

Sometimes for all the right reasons (like Greg Bird helping NSW crack the State of ­Origin code); sometimes for all the wrong reasons (like Greg Bird urinating near a police car on his wedding weekend); but always covering the full gamut of human emotions.

Every possible high has been matched by every possible low, quite often entangled with one another, and everything in between.

Most recently and most poignantly has been the death of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes while simply playing the sport he loved.

This event struck the nation’s nerve like few before and the outpouring of grief from his home town of Macksville, across the ­country and around the world was as touching as it was extraordinary, providing the sole shining light from a tragic situation as cricket attempted to heal.

Closer to home, Harry Hofman and Jayden Morrissey were two young men from the Maitland rugby league community also taken suddenly and far too soon.

And local sporting families have been ­supporting loved ones through serious illness and injury, which prompted beautiful ­community support from Maitland Triathlon Club’s Moving For Mel fund-raiser, a charity golf day for the Mark Hughes Foundation and the Rise for Alex movement surrounding the Aberdeen boy Alex McKinnon. 

At times it can be hard to make sense of these events, and sometimes you just can’t.

But sport cannot only provide the ­networks needed to get through the tough times, it also has the ability to uplift.

Like the South Sydney Rabbitohs ­premiership-drought breaker and what it meant to the Threlfo family in Telarah 61 years after late poppy Frank played for the Bunnies in the grand final success of 1953.

Like Tim Cahill scoring “that” goal at the World Cup in Brazil; like the five decades of Maitland sport celebrated at the city’s 50th anniversary awards; and like the Melbourne Cup trophy arriving in Maitland for the first time in 101 years courtesy of Protectionist co-owner Luke Murrell.

And the big shows like the Commonwealth Games and Winter Olympics helping to bring the world ­together when events like the Sydney Siege and Pakistan school massacre threaten to tear us apart.

So as full-time descends on 2014 and we reflect on the last 12 months, let us take strength from the sporting world and ­prepare play on in 2015.

Sport is life, life is sport.

That will be my final column this season.

So from our Maitland Mercury family to yours, all the best for the festive season and may it be a very Merry Christmas.

Catch you all in the new year.