Play At Every Age
Judi Works & Shannon Siegel, USA
In Spring 2021 the Las Vegas Friendship Cup brought together diverse teams from across the USA. In collaboration with San Diego Soccer Women, Judi Works (73) and Shannon Siegel (55) documented their experiences before and during the tournament. Both Judi and Shannon live in California and play in women’s and mixed teams for older age groups.
An advocate for “play at every age,” San Diego Soccer Women brings visibility to the experience of women playing soccer from 30 into their 80s. The organization connects a global community of recreational players with teams, leagues, training programs, tournaments, trips, kit, and charitable giving.
Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your football life?
Judi: I live in Encinitas, California and I started playing soccer in the early 1970s. It was a challenge to keep playing league games, as my three children played from kindergarten through to high school. I coached my daughter and my sons at various times. I have played outdoor, indoor, as well as arena soccer. I still play over 70s tournament soccer even though I have Fibromyalgia now and have slowed down quite a bit. Wow, that is almost 50 years playing soccer! I still love the game!
Shannon: I have been playing soccer since I was 9 or 10 years old. I played in college, coached my way through high school and college, and coached a college team overseas at Cardiff Metropolitan University. I studied at Pacific Lutheran and UC Santa Cruz. When I started my Master’s at UT Austin, they had just sued for Title IX, so I got to play one year of NCAA D1 soccer there. I'm an Oregon native and played all my youth there. I have lived in California since 2005; 10 years in Southern CA, and I've been in the Bay Area since 2015, playing soccer all along.
Who is in the photos? Where were the photos taken?
J: The photos show the players from my over 70s team, the Sockers. Some photos are also of the Las Vegas Friendship Cup in April 2021, where we reached the semi-finals. The original Sockers team was formed by Jacquie Burt in 1973 and coached for free by Al Povey. I have played with the original team since 1973, and I also play with other teams in the North County San Diego leagues.
S: My photos also show the Las Vegas tournament and the people I play pickup soccer with on Saturdays in San Jose. In Las Vegas I was playing on the Sam Adams team - we had teams in the Women's, Men's, and Co-ed tournaments this year. Women's is now over 50 or 55. Men's over 55 and/or over 60, Co-ed over 45.
How has Covid-19 affected soccer in your community?
J: Soccer has been cancelled since March 2020. Since then, a group of soccer friends started meeting together weekly, going on hikes at the beach and exploring some local trails in North County San Diego to stay in shape. We are still doing this. We call it walk and talk. A lot of talk is of soccer. Our average age is around 74. Soccer leagues for older women have started up again but our summer tourist traffic keeps me from joining in a lot of the time. I also have many family commitments such as babysitting my grandchildren. I love doing this, but I miss being able to play soccer regularly. The Las Vegas friendship tournament was the first time really playing a game for me since March 2020. I am looking forward to the Huntsman Games in St. George, Utah in October 2021.
S: We have been shut down since March of last year. For a short time, we could play small-sided pick-up games in the park, and then in October/November 2020 they shut that down. We have been able to play pick-up again since March 2021, and some leagues have allowed small-sided outdoor play with masks. We got to move our indoor team back indoors on Sunday, but still had to wear masks. In June, California completely opened again, so we played our first indoor soccer games without a mask in 15 months.
What did you try to show with the photos? Was there any wider meaning with the photos?
J: It was a bit challenging using an old-time camera now that everything is digital! I tried to show the varied experiences at the Las Vegas tournament. One photo with a significant wider meaning shows the Kathy Harvey Spirit Award being presented. The Spirit Award idea was started by Jacquie Burt after last August, when our team member Kathy Harvey was murdered in Mexico. It will be given in her memory each year at the Las Vegas tournament. It was decided that our team would be given the medal the first year it was awarded, as we all knew her, and it made us all proud to carry on her spirit and love.
Kathy was always kind, funny and full of spirit. We all miss Kathy so much as she was so much fun on and off the field. Next year the team that receives this award will be friendly to each other and nice to play against as a team. Kathy’s impact on the team was that she always was so positive even though we might be losing badly.
S: I was trying to just show different aspects of the game and the social component of the tournaments and various matches. We love to play and spend time with our friends on and off the field.
What are the opportunities for older (and younger) female soccer players in USA?
J: There are many opportunities for older female soccer players in San Diego. Girls can play on recreational as well as more competitive teams. Girls can get college scholarships. There are professional teams for girls to now play on. When I went to College I played on the San Diego State Tennis team, but we had no money compared to the men’s teams. This has all changed.
S: There are myriad opportunities to play soccer for all females in the US. There are soccer hotspots all over the country and many of us grew up with the sport and have continued to play at a competitive level as we aged.
Are there any good stories connected with the people or teams you photographed?
J: My Sockers teammate Karen tells a good story: “I went to the Gay Games with my team (all lesbians) in 1973 and was probably the only heterosexual there (or felt like it, anyway), out of 27,000 participants. On the day before the soccer started, the schedule was posted on a board at the field, and lots of teams showed up to see whom and where they would be playing. "Oh," said one woman, as she stared at the board, "We have a bye." "Well”, said one of my teammates, putting her arm around my shoulders, "WE have a hetero."
Another story involved me. I was playing on a team and had just found out I was pregnant. I hadn’t told anyone except our team captain Jacquie. After the game the ref came up to her and told her we had too many players on the field. We knew we didn’t, but the ref kept insisting this. He noted that one of us was pregnant and that was why he said we had too many players. We never knew how he had found this out.
S: I have been playing with the Sam Adams club (both women and co-ed) for over 30 years. We started out as Oregon Ale because our team manager knew a lot about beer and ended up asking Oregon Ale to sponsor us. When Sam Adams bought them out in the 90s, they honoured the sponsorship and we have been called Sam Adams since. We have players from all over, but most of us are from Oregon, Washington, and California.
Why is soccer so important for the USA and its people?
J: I think soccer is so important for the USA and its people because it unites us with the whole world. With television and YouTube videos we can watch games of both men and women of all ages from many countries. Soccer is like a common language.
S: Like any physical activity, it is important for people to be active and to move. Soccer is very popular around the world and the US needs to be a part of that. It helps that soccer is accessible in many ways that other sports may not be. You don't have to be a specific size or weight or have a certain physique to play soccer, or to play it well.
What does it mean to you to play in tournaments like the Las Vegas Friendship Sports tournament?
J: I enjoy tournaments like the Las Vegas Friendship Cup as I see fellow soccer players from all over. Our team has always stayed at the same hotel, and we meet for dinner and take in a show, relax by the pool, or go out gambling as a group after playing. Of course, playing soccer with friends is the most fun. I always enjoy driving to the various tournaments with friends and catching up on their lives.
S: It's a lot of fun. And especially this year, when we have not been able to travel, see friends or play, it was a great return to a sense of normality.
What does football mean to you and your community?
J: Football means relaxing. It takes away the stress of COVID and various other stresses. Even though I am older now I feel good that I can still kick the ball and be outside having fun with my friends on the fields. Soccer is a way of being together as a community in both playing and watching, whether it be our children, grandchildren, or spouses’ games.
What is the future of US soccer (and women's soccer in particular)?
J: I think the future of US Soccer and in particular women’s soccer is looking to be stronger and stronger every year. The play is definitely improving as many kids are playing competitively from age 4 on up. The coaching is improving. I remember starting out and having a very good coach who taught proper kicks of the ball. Some friends who didn’t receive good coaching are learning new skills even at age 70. I can’t wait to watch my 4-year-old granddaughter play her first game. There are so many ways soccer is reaching and uniting all the various groups of people in our country.
S: Women's soccer is very strong in this country, and I don't see that changing. The rest of the world is catching up at the elite level, which is only a plus as it will improve the game all around. In addition, there are more opportunities available at the recreational levels as well, as well as for various disadvantaged groups (Homeless World Cup, soccer for athletes with disability, soccer on the streets).
