Tough task for Mansfield Senior Reds’ walking footballers in the Spanish sunshine
Mansfield Senior Reds, the longest established walking football club in the area, have been on their travels once again and have just returned from playing in the Lorus Copa Espanola Spanish Masters in the Over 65 section, at the Mediterranean Sports Village, near Salou.
The competition posed a tough task for the Reds who were all aged over 70 and, though competitive, hadn't the cutting edge to bring success.
In their opening games they took the lead through Steve Haynes and Neil Pressley but lost both 2-1. They did have a purple patch when they faced the competition favourites in Barcelona and put on a top display, walking away with a 3-0 win.
Steve Birkin crashed home an early penalty and he added another from open play with Steve Haynes also finding the net.
In the next set of matches they couldn't turn three draws into wins, Neil Pressley scoring with a powerful effort in a 1-1 draw.
The best was another fine result with a 0-0 v Barcelona in the repeat fixture.
A club spokesman said: “A skilled use of subs enabled the whole squad to feature in game time against Barcelona to enhance a few Cvs!
“Our local seniors were not disgraced, with most games close encounters but the results fell on the wrong side.”