The weekly pickup games started as a way to get back into playing soccer, but now three southern Albertans will be donning the maple leaf on the international stage.
“Having had to take several years off due to an injury, now to be able to get back out onto the field, kick the ball again, it’s really something I thought would never happen again,” Will Tietz said.
Now, walking football is taking Tietz, Bill Chapman and George Lubberts all the way to England where they’ll represent Canada in the inaugural FIWFA Walking Football World Nations Cup later this month.
The three Albertans are joining their countrymen from Ontario and B.C. as part of Canada’s 12 players and two coaches.
“To represent Canada is just a fantastic thing for me,” Chapman said.
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Walking football – or soccer in North America – is a low-contact alternative, where one foot has to stay on the ground at all times.
“It’s a different skill set than the normal soccer, it’s a different type of a talent in a way and of course the rules are much different,” Chapman said.
Canada is guaranteed to play five matches in the 60+ age group, lining up in a pool that includes England, France, Basque country, South Korea and Japan.
It’s the first taste of the international stage for the local players, who are excited to experience both the competition and the setting as they’ll play at the training grounds for England’s national football team.
“The important part is having fun. We’re going to try to enjoy ourselves,” Lubberts said. “My goal is if we score one goal I’ll be happy. If we win one game I’ll be ecstatic.”
No matter the result, it will be the trip of a lifetime for the southern Alberta trio.
“I’ve played a lot of soccer here in Lethbridge, mostly on a local level, a little bit at the provincial level, but never at an international level. This is a game-changer,” Tietz said.
“This becomes the icing on the cake for my soccer career.”
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