Walk the Field event in Wollongong to help break down football's barriers

Dunwell had enjoyed a rich history in the round-ball game but, at 69, he thought his days on the pitch were well and truly over.

However, being introduced to the low-impact, modified version of the game has allowed the East Corrimal resident a new lease on life. Dunwell has gone on to represent his country in the game and now, at aged 73, he is set to be one of the oldest players in the Illawarra's first-ever walking football tournament next month.

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"Walk the Field" - which is open to men and women of all ages and abilities - has been made possible by Football South Coast in partnership with University of Wollongong's third-year public relations students, who have taken on organising the event as part of their curriculum.

The tournament, which will be divided into "competitive" and "social" divisions, will be held on May 13 at UOW's Sports Hub. Walking football, as the name suggests, sees participants walk during games and is a non-contact version of the sport that focuses on passing, rather than speed, and is a sport that is growing in popularity across Australia..

Dunwell said walking football was a game that anyone could get involved with.

"Back in 2019, I was on the Northern Beaches and I met a guy at a coffee shop who asked 'you used to play football seriously'? And I said 'yeah', and he said that they do walking football and I should come down. My first thought was 'walking football? Not really, that's not for me'," Dunwell said.

"But I ended up giving it a go and really enjoyed it. I then moved to Wollongong in October 2019 and then had a double-knee replacement (in 2020), and around six months later, the Northern Beaches team were coming to play Wollongong, and I was asked to play. And I said 'probably not', but I said come down because I wanted to meet the Wollongong team.

"But I played for an hour and my knees were fabulous. I met the Wollongong people and I've been playing ever since. It's a really inclusive sport for all standards. We play twice a week and we have the competitive team, which I'm still part of, and the social team."

Walk the Field was launched at Warrawong High School on Monday, with registrations set to close this Saturday, April 29.

FSC walking football coordinator Joe Seco said it had been great to organise the event alongside UOW.

"The university students have given us a different perspective on how to organise a tournament, which has been very helpful. They've done a lot of the promotional stuff which has also helped us to link in the football side of it," he said.

"It is the first ever tournament like this being held here and is part of the Football South Coast strategic objective to offer football for all ages and abilities. It is a unique form of football played with its modified rules that allows no running, and it is a team-based exercise with the focus on passing and player involvement.

"The aim is to provide participants with physical and mental benefits. You feel healthier, you have fun and it encourages exercise, while making new friends.

The challenge for UOW students to help organise Walk the Field was issued by public relations and sports marketing lecturer, Dr Mercedez Hinchcliff.

One of her students, Julia McElroy, said it had been a great opportunity.

"It's about encouraging people in the community to get involved and participate in a way that keeps them physically active while also being good for their mental health," McElroy said.

"We have a focus on the three S's - safe, skilful and social - because we know as people age, they become more socially isolated, and that puts them at risk mentally. So it's about encouraging them to get out and play a game that they thought they weren't able to continue playing, in a way that is safe.

"It's been amazing (to work with FSC). We've had Joe and a few of the players come in, and it's been amazing to hear their real-life stories. We've had players say they were living in Sydney and moved down to Wollongong, and they've made a whole new community.

"They've given us really good information about the rules and how it's transforming people's lives, and giving insight because, realistically, a lot of us didn't have much information about walking football."

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Fellow student Nadine Dimmock said the response to Walk the Field had been "really positive".

"People in the community are definitely looking to engage with it," she said.

"There's always going to be challenges in organising an event, but the main thing has been getting word out there. There's always challenges with that too, but we're doing the best we can, and so far we've had a positive response."

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