Matthew Hayden Quotes

I do play football no-holds-barred. Any edge I can get, I'll take. I'd grab a face mask only in a fit of anger. Uncontrolled anger is damn near insane.

The way I approach things is that I'm a physical player.

Some guys are admired for coming to play, as the saying goes. I prefer those who come to kill.

When I step on the field, you know what you gonna get.

Buy a steak for a player on another club after the game, but don't even speak to him on the field. Get out there and beat them to death.

When people think of me, they think about me knocking catchers down and knocking second basemen down and yelling at pitchers. But when I took the spikes off after the game, I was a nice guy when I went home.

Sportsmanship and easygoing methods are all right, but it is the prospect of a hot fight that brings out the crowds.

Football is a violent game. We are violent men.

I'm the wrong person to not be professional around. When someone calls 'action' and we're in the frame together, I'm gonna run you over. You're gonna get eaten alive.

I am a pretty tough guy. I'm an old hockey player.

You try to stay within the rules for the sake of the game, but you can always turn up the intensity.

Sometimes people think that if you're always helping people up and never hit someone with a hard foul, you're automatically a good sport. I don't believe that.

I like to compete. So, any time I get to go live - which means go all out - that's what I like to do.

Fighting football, not serenity football - that is what I like.

There's obviously games and a history you have with guys that maybe you're a little more fired up to let them know if maybe you beat them on a play.

I don't go out looking to make spectacular plays. I just try to come in and be a physical presence inside.

We need to play like somebody took our lunch money, like somebody disrespected your mother. I think that's the type of anger you need have and the aggression you need to have on the court. That doesn't mean making mad faces or mean faces but it means attacking the glass, strongly attacking the rim when you have the ball on offense.

The competitive spirit of basketball is slowly leaking out. Taking pride in one-on-one defense is slowly leaking out. It's more about selling calls and flopping.

I play with a lot of emotion because I'm a passionate guy, and I play with that passion. I love playing that way. Sometimes you're late onto the ball, sometimes you're not. Sometimes you make contact with the guy when you tackle him, sometimes not. It's a sport where individual duels are vital, so I don't see it as a problem.

When we were playing, it was rough and tough. Even superstars like me fouled out a lot.

Hard fouls are a part of playoff basketball, and I think that's how basketball should be. I don't take those fouls personally.

There's little place for sympathy in football.

I'm a football player. I believe I'm just as tough as anybody else. I try not to play like a wide receiver.

You don't want to let the other team feed off your outward physical demeanor. But at the same time, you can't go out and play this game and not expect to just be angry and be competitive and be excited and have that fire in your belly.

I don't step back, that's football. It's about winning.