When I first got involved in over 50s football, I thought that was about as far as it went. You reach a certain age, you get a game with people your own age, and that is a brilliant thing in itself. What I never imagined was that it carried on well beyond that. Not just carried on, but at a level where you can pull on a shirt and represent your club against a national side in your seventies.
That is exactly what is about to happen, and I could not be more excited about it.
On Sunday 23 August, our very own Over 70s team take on England Over 70s at Newport Pagnell Town FC. This has all come together thanks to Ian Groves, who has done an amazing job pulling a squad together from right across our club. We are well represented, with players from Banbury, Kettering, Rugby and MK, so it genuinely feels like all of us are in this together.
And here is the part that makes it special. England are using this game as their final warm up before they head off to the World Cup. So we are taking on a side about to go and represent their country on the biggest stage there is. Get a result against them and, who knows, we might just be able to say we beat the eventual world champions.
Men in their seventies, still running out and going toe to toe with the best in the world. Who knew that most of us are actually too young to play in this one. For once, we are the young ones looking up.
The squad who carry our name that day: Allan Malcolm, Anthony Dand, Barrie Hicks, Brian Elphick, Dorien James, Francis Kinner, Graham Bickerdyke, Ian Groves, Ian Le Fevre, John Fresco, John Townley, Kevin Whiteman, Rab Anderson, Robert Wilson and Sam Shabbir.
We know how tough it will be. We go in as underdogs and nobody is pretending otherwise. But I know this group, and every one of them will give absolutely everything on the day. Against a side like this, it is a day to go out and enjoy.
More than anything, I would love a good crowd there to see it. If you can get to Newport Pagnell Town FC on Sunday 23 August for a 1pm kick off, come along and get behind the team. Games like this do not come around often, and it would be great to see you there.