Football with a difference has local group walking on air

Renowned former football star and coach Pauric Nicholson is still staying in touch with the game through playing walking football - and it’s a sporting pursuit that he is thoroughly enjoying.

Pauric is part of a group who play walking football at Willow Park FC, and he’s happy to be joined by some of those he played with for local teams such as Athlone Town and the old St Mary’s club.

“I find it invigorating and very enjoyable. You’re out in the fresh air getting exercise,” Pauric told the Westmeath Independent.

“Like a lot of people of my age, I started playing football on the street and this kind of replicates the enjoyment of playing on the street.

“It’s very popular in England, it spread very quickly over there, they have leagues and so on, and the FAI started it in Ireland as well. Walk-a-side football is the term we use,” continued Pauric, who previously worked for the FAI as a coach educator.

Well known local sporting figures such as Dennis Clarke, Jimmy Greene and Gerry McHugh are among those who play with the Willow Park group. And Pauric credits Gerry as the person mainly responsible for keeping the concept going in Willow Park, after FAI Westmeath Regional Development Officer Glen Byrne had run an eight-week programme earlier this year to establish and develop the walking football group in Willow Park.

“Gerry asked me to get involved and, since I started playing, it has invigorated me. Gerry was the instigator in getting it going and he was involved in getting the new all-weather pitch for us. The previous pitch was a bit hard but the new pitch is a brilliant surface to play on,” he said.

Walking football is a variant of association football that is aimed at people aged over 50, and those who no longer have the mobility or physical capacity to play the traditional game. The sport can be played both indoors and outdoors.

Though based on soccer (albeit with numerous differences), the key difference in the rules, from standard football, is that if a player runs then they concede a free kick to the other side.

This restriction, together with a ban on sliding tackles, is aimed both at avoiding injuries and facilitating the playing of the sport by those who are physically disadvantaged. In addition, the ball is not allowed to be kicked above head height.

Walking football was devised as a competitive sport by John Croot of Chesterfield FC in England. The manner in which the sport is played promotes cardiovascular fitness whilst producing the least stress on the body.

Asked about the rules of the game, Pauric quips: “the way we play it, there are no definite rules”.

From speaking to Pauric, however, it’s obvious that the game has a competitive element for the local group in addition to being an enjoyable social outlet.

Walking football was originally played without goalkeepers but there are keepers in some variations of the game and the Willow group usually have them as part of their games.

“We generally play with goalkeepers as we like to keep it competitive; that’s in our DNA from playing sport over the years. It’s better to have a goalkeeper to shoot at,” said Pauric.

“It’s a brilliant way of getting fit as the ball motivates you to keep moving. It’s all about ball control, passing and movement,” he added.

The group started off playing once a week but now play twice a week - Mondays and Thursdays at 12 noon. And even the bitterly cold weather last week didn’t prevent the group from meeting up on Thursday of last week.

The number of people who show up on a particular day dictates the form the game takes. Depending on numbers, the group could end up playing a five-a-side or a seven-a-side game.

At 78, Pauric reckons he’s the oldest of the group who play at Willow Park, but he encourages people of a similar age to give it a try if they ae interested in maintaining fitness and mobility.

Pauric feels playing the sport has many benefits for the physical and mental health of older people.

“We play for about two hours and it’s a social outlet as people can have a cup of tea and a chat afterwards if they want,” he said.

As well as games among themselves, the Willow group has played matches against clubs from other areas.

New players are welcome to join and Pauric points out that anybody who has recently joined is still coming back for more.