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If only all English teams were this handsome

Golden Balls

Tuesday, 23 October 2007

Golden balls, eleven players, kits, straps and sweat. Football may seem a national obsession far removed from the LGB&T way of life but recent events on a pitch in Argentina have proved we have a strike rate even the Premiership would envy.

The International Gay and Lesbian Football Association recently held their Football World Championships in Argentina, and the English teams played like the lions they are. The annual event, established in 1997, saw twenty-three teams from around the world take part in the week long Championship. Teams from Bolivia, Iceland, Mexico, Uruguay, the United States and Canada starred on the pitch as well as England’s Stonewall FC, London Titans and Village Manchester FC. It proved to be one of footballs most unique and enjoyable festivals.

Village Manchester FC impressed many reaching the quarter finals to meet San Francisco FC between the posts. Despite groin strains and unfamiliar positioning(!) Manchester Village FC played hard and fast against a much stronger team. Sadly when the whistle blew they were on the wrong side of a 4-2 score line but there was the glory of the tournament’s Golden Boot being awarded to Village striker Stu Johnson to cushion the blow. Commenting on their trip to Argentina, manager Stu Butters had nothing but praise for his players. "Everyone played their part in a massive effort. There were some outstanding performances from players making their debuts for the club as well as from those playing in unfamiliar positions for the first time." He added "when you consider we also had injuries to Dan Shapiro in the first game and lost both centre halves Steve Clayton and Paul Taylor to injuries in the quarter final, the lads showed real grit and character to take us through to the knockout stages. Everyone should be extremely proud of their effort.”

A boot ahead of Village Manchester FC were Stonewall FC. They brought home the silver for England as captain Darren Lewis lead them out against the host nation team Los Dogos. 1-0 was the score but the pride they felt was higher. But then you wouldn’t expect anything less from the Gay Olympic champions. Douglas Edwards, Stonewall FC’s first team striker said about his team’s performance. "The spirit of the team was amazing and the football that we played was of a high quality. It was great that other teams would comment on our performance. I would like to thank the other teams who came to support our games in the later stages of the competition. We won in Chicago and got Silver in South America, which is remarkable. Stonewall continue to do the UK proud on and off the pitch!”

No matter how you wear your team strip – clubbing, posing or playing - gay and lesbian football is rapidly gaining the recognition it deserves. With 2008 seeing the International Gay and Lesbian Football World Championships coming home to London, pitch side is where you’ll need to be.

www.stonewallfc.com
www.vmfc.co.uk