In this week’s column, Fakenham writer Jim Harding tells tales of playing football across the world…
Growing up in the days when televisions were absent in most houses, including ours, viewing live sports was very limited. Despite this, I embraced everything from cricket to football to athletics to boxing with great enthusiasm.
Football was probably the most influential and at least when my dad, a smart electrician, cobbled together our first TV with a nine-inch screen I was able to see cup finals live every year.
Our local football team was Woking and I was a regular touchline supporter with the ground just a few hundred yards from where we lived.
In my teens, I played youth fixtures regularly for my county, Surrey, with some matches taking place on Woking’s home ground. Quite a thrill.
Out of the blue, I received the offer of a trial with West Brom, then in the old First Division, and was escorted up to Birmingham by train.
Initially, I was invited to the Hawthorns and shown a cabinet displaying the club’s past achievements.
The trial took place elsewhere, on a training ground and, though nervous, I performed quite well. A few weeks later I received a letter inviting me back but my heart had already been set on travelling.
In particular, I was desperate to hitch-hike to Australia along what came to be known as the “hippie trail” through Europe, the Middle East and the Far East.
Nothing could deter me at the time, not even the thought of playing professional football so I politely gave my reasons to West Brom. Privately, I probably didn’t think I would be good enough.
Anyway, when I was 20, my travel plans came together and I set off into the unknown, having first obtained a selection of visas in my passport.
At the time, all Commonwealth countries were freely open to British citizens and I was proud to sport a painted Union flag on my rucksack. I made it to Sydney in around five months where I joined my sister at her home.
Soon after, I joined one of the top soccer clubs in the city, Hakoah, and loved playing for them for three seasons.
It helped that we had a number of ex-professionals from England and Wales in the side, whose presence contributed to Hakoah winning some major trophies including the Australia Cup.
Though pressed to stay I was determined to “complete the circle” and hitch to England via Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan and the Americas.
I was very restless when I got back to England, wondering where to turn to next, filling in time with a lot of casual jobs. Then the thought of studying again prompted me to consider teaching and I applied to Borough Road College in Middlesex and over four years obtained a P.E. degree.
The college had a major impact on my life as I met my now wife Alison there and after marriage we taught in neighbouring Suffolk schools.
After a couple of years teaching in the same technical school “down under” in Victoria we returned to England and eventually found our way to Fakenham, in particular its grammar school and then high school.
By then in my late thirties, I was more than delighted to join Fakenham Football Club and share my concluding football career with a team just close to our first home in Westmead Road.
At the time the club played on what was known as The Lawn. It was a sociable and friendly outfit and I have no regrets on playing out my final years of football in such good company.