Happy faces all-round as parishioners gather for a day of sporting activity. Photo: Mary Teo.
By Matthew Lau
The closest “England” will come to winning a World Cup this year happened at Yangebup Parish earlier this month.
It finally “came home” at the parish’s inaugural Walking Soccer World Cup tournament on 15 September at the Mater Christi Church oval grounds.
Catholics from across the Perth Archdiocese made up the 12 ‘five-a-side’ teams for a day of friendly competition, which promotes healthy and active living.
- Yangebup Parish Priest Fr Dat Vuong takes a shot for Argentina (blue). Photo: Mary Teo.
- Parishioners of all ages participated in Mater Christi Church’s inaugural Walking Soccer World Cup. Photo: Mary Teo.
- Brazil (yellow) maintain possession of the ball against Mexico (green). Photo: Mary Teo.
Team “England” saw off “Mexico” in the final, respectively seeing off “Brazil” and “Switzerland” in the semis.
Walking soccer (football) is a variant of the traditional game, restricting players from running or kicking the ball over chest height.
Yangebup Parish Priest Fr Dat Vuong first initiated walking soccer at a Perth parish when he was at St Peter the Apostle in Bedford.
Yangebup Parish Assistant Priest Fr Joseph Laundy (right) presents overall winners England with their trophies. Photo: Mary Teo.
Parishioner Stephen Teo has been involved with the Mater Christi walking soccer since its inception two years ago.
“Our first kick-off session was in July 2016 and we started our first competition in Nov 2016, tying the event to the date on which the Foundation Stone was laid for the new Mater Christi parish,” Mr Teo said.
“This year is our third year, however we decided to do a mini-World Cup event, linking it to the World Cup year and having it in September.”