8/12/2017 0 Comments These boots were made for walkingJust what is "walking football"? L.I.S.A Secretary Jackie Atkins had never played football before but after only 2 sessions she is hooked! Exercise, fun and friendships - Here's another example of why football is much more than just a game and all thanks to the fab charity - Imps in the Community; By Jackie Atkins What were you doing on 4th October 2017? Don’t remember? No, neither do I, but it seems I ‘liked’ a post on L.I.S.A Facebook page asking if anyone was interested in ladies walking football sessions and the next thing I knew - I was signing up! I have watched football for many years with hubby Keith; and about 8 months ago got hooked into the IMPvasion and discovered that I really enjoyed attending live matches (especially at lower league level where there is far less theatrics than in the Premier League!). However, that being said - I have never played a game so what on earth was I doing writing a comment in response to Katrina Hall’s post of 4th November advertising the start of Ladies Walking Football; that went something along the lines of “Going to give it a go”!! Too late - the deed was done and not one to renege on my commitments - on 25th November I arrived at Sincil Bank donned in jogging bottoms and several warm layers (it was a VERY cold morning) - and 5 keen but clearly nervous ladies walked onto the astro turf in readiness for our first kick about. None of us knew anything about the rules and regulations of walking football - we were all newcomers and all (I found out) - equally anxious and excited about what we were undertaking. We started by acquainting ourselves with the rules. We were happy with the line stating there was no off side rule; that sliding was not allowed and that no running was permitted - but what constitutes running? Apparently, as long as one foot remains on the ground - it's not running. We started by getting to grips with passing the ball using the side of our foot and dribbling around a cone. Once ‘perfected’ we moved on to passing the ball to another person with the aim of them taking a shot at goal - easier said than done. Our first attempts were not the best, but as with all new undertakings - we gradually got more confident in what we were doing and even managed to knock all the cones in the goal mouth down. By now, we were chatting and laughing together and thoroughly enjoying the experience - new friendships were being formed and initial anxieties were dispelled. It was then that our boys arrived for the game against Port Vale. The Cowley's were their usual charming selves and happily signed autographs and chatted to fans. I’m sure they also noticed our little kick about going on and were perhaps eyeing up their next signings :-) Katrina (our very able coach) produced the dreaded bibs and we split into two teams for our first ‘game’. You would think that a group of women who had just met would be friendly and polite - NO - we were committed to winning and our ‘walking’ became distinctly faster as the game progressed (and I actually think some of us might have broken into a jog……….). At the end of the session, we agreed that we had thoroughly enjoyed it and were definitely returning the following week. We did, along with another 5 ladies (doubling the first session attendance) which is amazing. Once again we warmed up, practiced our passing skills and had a game - much more challenging than the first week and more competitive but still as enjoyable. Most of the ladies attending are on the L.I.S.A Facebook page so have been brought together through this group - how fabulous is that! Would we have found ourselves playing walking footie had it not been for L.I.S.A - probably not. We are still looking for more ladies to join us - it is a fun way to get some exercise and make new friends. All ages are welcome. First session is free, so there’s nothing to lose. Who knows - we might one day even find ourselves picking up a trophy of our own :-) The smiles say it all, why not join them :-)
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