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http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bodysphere/old-blokes-who-still-play-footy/4912894
The old blokes who still play footy
In the world of Aussie rules football, we tend to think of men in their 20s clashing in physically bruising encounters that would send a man in his middle age straight to the ICU. But in Brunswick, a team of ageing players are showing that with a little more consideration when it comes to high tackles and knees in the back, and a defibrillator on the side lines, playing into your 50s and 60s is not only possible, but offers exercise and male bonding that heals the heart.
Blokes with big bellies and grey hair; it's not your usual image of footballers.
These men are a long way from the sleek, lean, super-fit young professionals who the crowds flock to see every weekend. Nevertheless, the players of the Brunswick Mudlarks in the AFL Masters competition put their bodies on the line and play hard.
At a muddy ground in the Melbourne suburb of Ascot Vale, they're playing their last game for the season. As the opening siren sounds they urge each other on.
'Let's make it a good one boys, really work hard,' team captain Brett Swain, 53, tells his players. 'We've got four quarters to play then we get six months off'.
Most of them have come back to the game after a long absence. For Chris Reynolds, who's 52, it's the fulfilment of a wedding promise.
'At the altar my wife promised me one more season,' he says.
That was 30 years ago. In his younger days playing football was a big part of his life but children, careers and houses have prevented him playing.
'The time hasn't been right,' Reynolds says. 'But I was always owed a last season, and it's taken 30 years to actually get there, so I am endeavouring to make up for lost time.'
The old days of going down the pub with your mates is not what we do any more. We go out with our wives and with our families and that's wonderful, but there are not many occasions that I go out just with a bunch of blokes, and this is the time I can do that, and it's tremendous.
~ Tim Dolan, builder and player
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James Doughney is 61 and plays at full-back for the Mudlarks. 'They call me The General because I have a tendency to over-organise the back line,' he says. An academic by profession, Doughney stopped playing when his children were young. 'Like many of us, we stopped and coached our kids and put our kids through football,' he says. James eventually realised that it wasn't coaching he loved, it was playing. 'So I came back and started playing in this competition about 15 years ago.' And although it looks a much slower and gentler game from the sidelines, Doughney says it doesn't feel any different from when he was younger. 'When you get older you also get pretty bulky and so when you get 100-kilogram men bumping gently into each other, it still hurts.'
There are some modified rules in this competition, including one that states, 'Unnecessary vigour is penalised'. Paul Cook, 51, says that in his younger days if a player was backing into a pack, you'd put your knee up and drive forward. 'These days you tend to just let them take the mark and gently step back'. Typically the field umpire will draw all the players together on the ground before the start of play and remind them that they all need to go to work on Monday and so to avoid head-high contact and knees in the back. 'We all realise we're getting a bit long in the tooth,' says Cook. 'And we all know what it feels like to get a knee in the back or one a bit high'.
What about injuries? Cook says that Old Father Time is catching up with him and he’s torn his hamstring three times in the one season. Nevertheless he refuses to retire. ‘The boys keep asking me, "What's your injury?" and I say, "It's the heart string connected to the hamstring".' Paul is looking forward to season 2014, ‘I think six-foot under is when I will retire’.
Will Glenn is a station commander with the Metropolitan Fire Brigade in Melbourne and at 53 has been playing football continuously for 47 years. 'I must have heard a thousand times, you're too old to be playing footy, give it away,' he says. 'But I think generally speaking my fitness is quite good and I weigh up the sore muscles and aches and pains against the stuff inside; hopefully a healthier heart and those sorts of things that are going to keep me going.'
As well as playing, Glenn coaches the Brunswick Mudlarks. As a coach he has to accommodate the wide variation in playing abilities and fitness levels, from those like himself who've played continuously to those who haven't played since primary school. Glenn says many men want to join a footy team in middle age as a motivational tool for getting fit. 'You've got to teach them about football at an older age but keep them safe as well because they might not have the footy smarts, having not played for so long,' Glenn says.
Nevertheless, is there a little part of each player that still thinks he might be spotted by a talent scout from an AFL team? 'Absolutely, we all play in that hope,' Reynolds says. 'You don't want to let that fantasy die.' He notes that the trend in the AFL is moving away from signing up the very young players, towards the older and more experienced players. 'I know they are probably talking 23, 24 maybe max 25, but the trend is in the right direction.' Fellow player Tim Dolan agrees. 'I can't see why a mature aged draft pick wouldn't be on the cards. I think the older we get the better we get.' At 53 and a builder by trade, Dolan says he's in the best form of his football career. 'You just ask me and I'll tell you that,' he says with a laugh.
Dolan says that playing football is becoming more important to him as he gets older. At the club he mixes with a range of men who he ordinarily wouldn't meet. Dolan's playing today after missing a number of games though injury. 'I desperately wanted to play today, and I got a bit of a hero's welcome,' he says, 'Everyone gave me a big hug and a pat on the back, which is really nice.' His observation is that while the women of his generation are very good at maintaining friendships among themselves, the men are not. 'The old days of going down the pub with your mates is not what we do any more,' he says. 'We go out with our wives and with our families and that's wonderful, but there are not many occasions that I go out just with a bunch of blokes, and this is the time I can do that, and it's tremendous.'
One of the aspects of keeping a local football club going is fundraising. Dolan says that while the junior clubs tend to raise money for new equipment and the open age clubs raise money for their end-of-year trip, 'Our last big fundraiser, we bought a defibrillator!' Fortunately the Brunswick Mudlarks haven't had cause to use it as yet.
'It's a good thing to have,' Dolan says. 'Not as good as an end-of-year trip, but still, probably important.'
Find out more at The Body Sphere.
Last Modified on 27/08/2013 18:06
