Crosby, Skills and Cash

Want to know why "Soccer" will never take off in the United States?

It has nothing to do with David Beckham and little to do with their lack of understanding of the finer points of offside.

The reason is Ice Hockey and the player who makes it one of the best games on Earth right now is Sidney Crosby.

While American Football, Baseball and Basketball are all more popular, Hockey was the sport that the US soccer authorities targeted as vulnerable to being overtaken in the hearts of US Sports fans.

However when Sidney Crosby joined the National Hockey League (NHL) in 2005, Major League Soccer may as well have given up.

The Canadian was the first pick in the first round draft in 2005 and joined the Pittsburgh Penguins. Widely regarded in amateur hockey his appearance in the professional game was hotly anticipated.

He did not disappoint. He broke the record for most points in a rookie season with 102 (Points for players are scored in hockey with one for each goal or assist ), finishing with 39 goals and 63 assists.

Last season the 20 year old scored 120 points, (84 goals, 36 assists) which led the NHL, and he also won the Most Valuable Player award and the Outstanding player award for 2007.

This season he is joint top points scorer and leads the NHL in assists.

But stats don't do this guy justice. You know when you watch Roger Federer or Michael Jordan or Diego Maradona and they seem to be playing an entirely different game to everybody else?

You know these people were born to do this and thank God we are around to see it.

Last night the Penguins played a struggling New York Rangers team. Crosby was incredible, gliding past defenders, setting up two goals and generally being mesmerising to watch.

You know how good watching Tiger at Augusta or Shefflin at Croker is? Well Hockey clubs play 100 plus games a year. Crosby averages 20 minutes a game but it's a wonderful, all action 20 minutes.

Ice Hockey is in many ways a faster, more violent and graceful version of "soccer". There is no diving, more goals and non stop action.

For being the doyen of his sport "Sid the Kid" earns about 8.7 Million US Dollars a year. Even allowing for endorsements from Reebok and others he probably clears 10 Million Dollars a year.

Beckham is reportedly on 50 Million a year from the LA Galaxy.

Pay for US Sports Channels, stay up late, go into work bleary eyed and tell them you were watching a master in action all night.

The US Sports public don't want Beckham right now, they have a legend being made to watch.