AS traditionalists bemoan the seemingly inexorable decline of our local soccer scene the "New Wave" celebrate massive growth.
As participation in eleven-a-side football drops to levels which have seen teams, and now leagues, defunct, the small sided game reaches saturation point.
Taking the three major venues in the region - Manor 5s, Premier Fives, and Burnden Sevens - produces quite incredible figures.
Marcus Brown, manager of Manor 5s tells us: "We are catering for over 1,000 players per week. Two hundred players per night are benefiting from our facility and on Friday nights we run two junior sessions.
"The age spectrum we primarily accommodate is the 18 to 50-year-old. We also have a number of daytime bookings which are popular with services and shift workers and disabled games.
Amazing success
"During our first six months of opening we had seven leagues which then went up to twelve. Today we have seventeen leagues composed of 116 teams and, in addition, over twenty block bookings."
Premier 5s manager Andy Merrill expands on this amazing success story: "We have over 2,000 players per week competing in our organised leagues. On Friday's we run junior competitons and have over 300 kids coming along. There has been a big surge over the last two years. Taking all our bookings, leagues, referees and everything else into consideration we have over 3,000 players per week."
A "different ball game altogether" jokes Steve Mew down at Burnden seven-a-sides. "We are inundated at the moment," he said. "Our problem is we are just not big enough. We have 32 teams playing in the midweek leagues and 16 on Sundays.
"We have participatory levels around the 2,000 mark each week. We are that busy I can't even get a booking for my own team at the moment!"
Adding those together produces the quite astounding - and highly pleasing - total of over 7,000 regular players - and that's without taking into account other venues like schools and leisure centres.
Five-a-side, and seven-a -side, fits so smugly into modern man's lifestyle. Turn up straight from work in suit, shirt and tie, play the game, quick shower, clothes back on, pint and home to the family.
No being absent all afternoon and returning home caked in mud.
Games can be booked at any time. Marcus Brown points out, "A number of our teams request 9.30pm kick offs. 'The guys play with the kids, then go out to play' Marcus adds: "Basically the guys arrive home from work, have their family meal, play with the kids and have quality time with them. Then, when they have gone to bed, they go out to play a competitive game and maybe a social drink afterwards. Five-a-side is the UK's fastest growing sport."
Yes, as Steve says, "a different ball a game altogether". So does this mean that not only is football not on the decline in this region, it is now, in fact, at record, unprecedented levels of participation? All three of these quoted facilities are open free of charge to schools during the day. Manor 5s - 01204 796914; Premier 5s - 01204 525333; Burnden 7s - 01204 332336.
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