Jumpers for Goalposts Revisited

Contemplating the post-Christmas slog of returning to work took lifelong football fan Nathan Hind on a search for the boyhood friends he shared the 1980s playing football with.

As the 43-year-old office worker explains, since turning forty, he's lost contact with a lot of mates but noticed his fiancée and her friends regularly meet up. 'I hit forty and started to compare where I was with Society's ideal and felt miles behind. I was stuck in a rut and convinced life was getting away from me. It was a very isolating time.'

Apart from a sense of his forties posing more questions than answers, Nathan began to notice something was missing: 'I was in town and suddenly realised there's time to meet friends, but couldn't think of anyone to call.'

Although he admits men still find it hard to talk, Nathan says circumstances can be difficult: 'I assumed most of my pals were busy with homework, especially as my daughter is older now. You feel a bit rude phoning out of the blue after years.’

So, what prompted the search for his childhood friends?

'I found myself in situations that weren't me and missed the camaraderie of being around good lads. I guess I'm revisiting who I am to find a way forward.'

Nathan's eyes were opened by a surprise second chance: 'I'd been looking at making a big life change which was happening one week and then got cancelled the next, only to be back on again in the New Year. It was clear then that, through my own personal ups and downs, football's been the one constant throughout. I wanted to see if others  thought the same, but wasn't sure who’d be willing to talk about it.'

Last Summer, he visited Ladysmith School where the young lads spent hours each day dreaming of being their footballing heroes: 'It was nostalgic seeing kids running around like I did. Now the time's right to find the friends who were there from the beginning, swap stories and have a kick-around again.'

The former personal trainer believes that, although he is technically ‘middle-aged', in footballing terms, it's far from Game Over: 'Despite what some say about being over the hill, I believe we're only at half-time and can make great changes to our own lives, given the right environment. The positive nuances of football give us hope, direction and belief we can still make things happen.'

Although his health and fitness background and love of The Beautiful Game seem a perfect fit, there are no concrete plans just yet, although he's started writing about his thoughts: 'Speaking to the lads again who made my childhood what it was and developed my love for football would be amazing. If we can find a few from growing up in Mount Pleasant, Exeter in the eighties and hear from anyone else from that era with fond footballing memories, then our boyhood dreams live on and old friendships can be rekindled as well as new ones made, which is what life's all about.'

Nathan is keen to hear from anyone who is in their 40s and 50s interested in meeting up socially. Footballing ability and fitness aren't important, as long as you've a love for the game

You can find him on Twitter @middleagemanfc or email nathanbhind@gmail.com