Blackpool's walking footballers are spot-on in claiming Tenerife title

The two-day competition, held on November 9-10, saw Blackpool start with a 1-0 win against Norwich.

Next up was a 2-1 victory against Southend club Garon Park before the day concluded with a 6-0 defeat of the locally-based FC Las Chafiras squad.

The second day began with a tough game against Nottingham Forest, whose squad featured Bryan Roy, Ian Woan and Nigel Jemson.

After being hit by two early goals, Blackpool showed their character and rallied for a 2-2 draw.

The final league game brought a 5-0 win over Stag 24, which meant Blackpool topped the group and earned a semi-final with Garon Park.

After falling behind, Blackpool hit back and won 3-1 to reach the final, where they played Norwich after their 2-1 win over Forest.

Blackpool took an early lead but, in the second half, Norwich came on strongly and scored a well-deserved equaliser.

With the game ending 1-1, that meant penalties with Blackpool’s Ant Jones saving the Canaries’ first effort.

Steve Gough and Dan Rogers scored their spot-kicks, leaving it to captain Paul Sumner to step up and secure victory.

The club started its first season in September 2023 with only seven members, but won division one of the North West Over 50s Walking Football League at the first time of asking.

As well as league victory, this year also saw the team reach the Blackpool Tournament last eight as well as the finals of the Champions League and League Cup.