On the 1st of September 2024, which was coincidentally also Father’s Day, I was fortunate to play in the Men’s Masters Over 45s Grand Final at a packed but wind-swept Kambah Playing Fields No. 3. It was the Australian National University (ANU) FC versus Weston Molonglo FC for the sixth time.
But wait. Six...? How can that possibly be?
Turns out, the two squads had met in four Grand Finals during the 2010s (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015) when they were both playing Men’s Masters Over 35s Division 1. And then again in 2023 and 2024, only now both in Over 45s.
And for the first time in six attempts, I was proud to be a part of the ANU FC side who finally had its first win, 0-2 in extra-time. Weston had very much had the upper hand in previous encounters.
These match-ups in local Masters Grand Finals have taken on a life of their own given the shared history of these two squads, and now attract large springtime crowds. The 2024 encounter was merely the latest chapter to be written in a narrative that will likely continue into the Over 55s competition. Matches have been highly competitive over the years. But through such adversity, respect has grown.
It made me reflect on something that is pretty unique in Masters football: the rivalries that build up over time. Having previously played in local State and Premier leagues when I was younger, I can’t say there’s anything quite like it in those competitions. Teams chop and change every year, players come and go.
Much of this stems from the profile of the players involved in Masters. By the time you’ve reached your 30s and 40s, life has become pretty stable. Most people have regular jobs, they can have kids in school, they potentially then have junior coaching commitments, they have mounting responsibilities and weekly routines. As a result, football becomes crammed within a busy weekly schedule that runs from February to September each year, and potentially even longer.
With such stability in life also comes stability in football. People invariably have a regular squad of which they’re a part, which often begins life in one of the Masters Over 35s competitions, and then moves into Over 45s and 55s as players get older. The individual squad members change over each year, of course, depending on other life responsibilities, injuries, et cetera. But it’s overall pretty striking how steadfast these squads can be, with a dedicated core of players that keep returning each season. There’s a clear camaraderie within squads that comes alongside the obvious benefits to both physical and mental health from continued engagement and activity.
The end result of such commitment and longevity is often the formation of a Masters rivalry, which has happened naturally between ANU FC and Weston Molonglo FC over some 15 years. But that is really only one example of many rivalries that have enriched the Masters competitions from their very foundation.
Dipping back into the archives, the records reveal that the local Masters football competitions began in the year 1990. The earliest rivalries appeared to have involved squads from Canberra Croatia FC, Tuggeranong Utd, Kambah Old Boys, and Canberra City. This was then a single Over 35s competition simply known as “Masters” and playing Sundays 10am. ANU FC didn’t enter until the late 1990s.
Moving into the 2000s, and in step with the growth of football leagues everywhere, the Masters competitions began to multiply, becoming three separate Over 35s grades by the end of the decade, and now playing Sundays 9am or 11am. The first Over 45s competition formed around this same time, with more or less the same clubs from Over 35s dominating during the 2010s: Canberra Croatia FC, Burns FC, Woden Valley FC, Brindabella Blues. And it was then around this time that ANU FC and Weston Molonglo FC emerged in Over 35s Division 1 to kick off their storied rivalry.
Into the 2020s and you now have new rivalries in Over 35s Division 1 featuring such clubs as UC Stars and Queanbeyan City. ANU FC and Weston Molonglo FC have now moved their rivalry to Over 45s, with Canberra Croatia FC also featuring. Meanwhile, the formation of Over 55s competitions has simply meant renewed rivalries involving Burns FC, Woden Valley FC and Brindabella Blues. It’s the same old faces – just with a few more wrinkles.
As you can see, it’s easy to track the trajectories of these individual squads across the different Masters competitions. I suspect it’s only a matter of time before rivalries will emerge in a brand new Over 65s competition. What was once only 6 Masters teams in 1990 is now a total of 35 Masters teams in 2024, or a 483% increase in participation.
Women’s Masters have a single Over 35s competition, formed during the 2010s. But the rivalry there between Burns FC and Majura FC is just as strong.
If you go to watch a match of local Masters football, the first thing you’ll notice is the obviously slower pace. But the second thing may be the quality of the football – these are players who have been competing for many decades, including some ex pros, and know the game inside and out. Positionally, tactically, stylistically, it’s all still there – even if the speed they once had is gone. The competitiveness and physicality can also be surprisingly high, and especially at finals time.
It may not be the football most people are used to seeing: knee braces, compression clothing, caps, sunglasses, grey hair, no hair. But there’s still something to be deeply valued here, which is the dedication to be out there every weekend doing something that you’ve always loved, and no matter your age now. Hanging up the boots is the default setting. Meanwhile, those who keep going have to play their way through pain, inflammation, tightness and swelling, and all with the assistance of phalanx of painkillers, anti-inflammatories, massage rollers, physiotherapists, heat balms, ice packs and Epsom salts. It now takes longer to recover, which often makes it a genuine feat to be out there after a week of full-time work; commitments around town; and domestic duties at home, young kids and stressed partners and elderly parents, day care and medical care and aged care. But the payoff remains just as sweet as when you were running around with your little mates in Under 10s.
To all those juniors out there: being able to play into your 40s and 50s and beyond is something to strive for. I know I cherish my own Masters squad, and now even my rivalry, and the added dimension they bring to my life. And now, my kids have a chance to see me play, and they naturally learn by imitation. The magic of the beautiful game is inherited effortlessly by the next generation – kicking a ball is one of the first things children do with their feet after learning to walk on them.
With longevity comes wisdom, reflection, appreciation, gratefulness. It’s something to be celebrated, both within squads and within competitions and their subsequent rivalries, for these have the potential to be as long-lasting as some careers.
It’s something I would never have expected from “old blokes” football when I was younger, but I’m very glad to be a part of it now.
Words: Peter Papathanasiou
