A group of footballers in the heart of the Cotswolds are proving that age is no barrier to playing the beautiful game.

Close to 30 players train and play regularly for Bourton Rovers Veterans, a team who have gone from strength to strength in recent times.

At the moment they play only friendlies but the plan is to join the Royal Jersey League next season, a prospect that excites player/manager Richard Blundell-Palethorpe.

The 42-year-old has been in the role for the past couple of seasons and he said: “It’s brilliant, we bring a different energy to the club.

“We haven’t got the legs we once had but we have a lot of fun, there’s plenty of banter flying about.”

Veterans football is for players who are 35 and over, but Blundell-Palethorpe said that league rules allow teams to play three 33-year-olds.

Blundell-Palethorpe attended the team’s very first training session and plays whenever he can, but he’s far from the oldest player in the squad.

“That’s Robbo, he’s in his 60s,” said Blundell-Palethorpe.

‘Robbo’ is John Robson and Blundell-Palethorpe continued: “He’s a Bourton Rovers legend. He’s a centre-back, he’s still got the strength and the ability and he’s quicker than a lot of the players.

“He’s inspirational. He still plays for the first and second teams if they’re short.”

The first team play in Alliance West of the Hellenic League and these days play under the name of Bourton Rovers Development after their first team withdrew from Division One West before the start of the 2023/24 campaign.

“We couldn’t afford to compete at that level,” said Blundell-Palethorpe, before adding that the club are still looking to push on in the future.

“The aim is to get back into Division One and try to go as far as we can,” he continued. “We may well face the same problems as before but I think we’ll have much stronger foundations in terms of players.”

One of the reasons for that optimism is the club’s thriving youth set-up.

“We runs teams from under-6s all the way through to under-16s,” said Blundell-Palethorpe. “Next season we’ll have a team in the under-18 floodlit division.”

Blundell-Palethorpe, a chef who lives in Bourton-on-the-Water, enjoys a key role in the youth set-up because he has managed his oldest son Raef’s team for the past eight years.”

“I started with them when they were under-6s,” he said. “My aim is to manage the first team when the side are old enough to play for them.

“I’ve done quite a few of my coaching badges and I’m getting experience of managing adult footballers with the veterans.”

Blundell-Palethorpe is an experienced football man having played the game all of his life.

Originally from Birmingham – he’s an Aston Villa fan – the dad-of-three moved to this part of the world 10 years ago.

“I’ve played football ever since I was able to kick a ball,” he said. “I was a pacey right-winger, I could get up and down and I had a good delivery.

“I still play in that position today and still get the odd goal when the legs don’t give up on me!”

And scoring a goal is still a special feeling.

“Vets football can be quite intensive,” he said. “But the beauty is that it isn’t about physical fitness, it’s about getting a group of blokes together and enjoying each other’s company.”

The club, who take part in a Football in the River event in the River Windrush in the village every August Bank Holiday, are also developing their girls’ section, while walking football is another area which they are looking to explore.

“You’ve got to have ambition to drive the club forward,” said Blundell-Palethorpe. “The club is growing. The first time I went there, I fell in love with it.”