Soccer Olhanense Strollers (Olhão), Midlothian Walking Football (Scotland), Cove Rapidly Ageing Pensioners (two teams from Farnborough, Hampshire) Hartshill Strollers (West Midlands), Browns Walking Football (Vilamoura), Lagos Walking Football, Laranja Layabouts (Olhão), Chesterton Crusaders (Staffordshire) and Vermelho Vagabonds (Olhão) were the ten teams who stripped for action as the 50+ year-old players massaged aged muscles and strapped up dodgy knees.
A clear blue sky welcomed the participants who contested the ‘group stage’ games on the first day with the twenty games producing fifty-five goals.
In stark contrast to the previous day the knock-out stages on the Sunday were played under a continuous deluge of rain but the enthusiasm was infectious as teams battled to reach the final. Former British Army officer Tony Knights (Cove Rapidly Ageing Pensioners), who will run and cycle over 1000 miles along America’s legendary Route 66 next February to raise money for armed forces charity UK Homes 4 Heroes, said, “this has been a great weekend with fun, fitness and friendship being the key words.” And it was Tony and his team, Cove Rapidly Ageing Pensioners, who contested the Walking Football Tournament final against Soccer Olhanense Strollers. In a game of well honed skills, which was a great advert for the sport, it was the Olhão based team who came out on top after Brian Kilcline converted a first-half penalty.
Winners of the plate competition, for losing first round teams, were Chesterton Crusaders who beat Cove Rapidly Ageing Pensioners 2nd team. Brian Kilcline won the ‘Player of the Tournament’, as voted for by all the teams, whilst 74 year-old Wolfgang Eudenbach (Laranja Layabouts) was presented with the ‘Forever Young Award’ for the oldest player in the competition.