Spoil sports - can Habits of Mind help reduce mental problems in kids?

I read with interest the Courier Mail article (Sunday 19th October - Jackie Sinnerton) titled Spoil Sports. In it University of Wollongong research fellow Dr Stewart Vella nominates a (potentially 20% higher) risk of psychological issues in children as a result of dropping out of organised sport between the ages of 8 and 10. 

As an educator and not a psychologist, I wonder if there is any correlation between these issues and a possible lack of coping skills, skills which ordinarily can be developed in a healthy way through participation in organised sport. The final paragraph of the article nominates 'resilience, social skills, communication, all kinds of life skills' which are essential components of a healthy childhood leading into adolescence and beyond.