Any weekend warrior involved in grassroots sport knows just how much passion and dedication it takes to pull on the boot’s week after week. And as the years roll on, it certainly doesn’t get any easier.

But Stan Gurling is a different kettle of fish.

Last season marked Stan’s first year at Doonside Hawks, and while many would applaud anyone his age for simply staying active, Stan has gone a step further. At 75 years young, he competes in the Over 35 Division 3 competition in the BDSFA a remarkable effort for a man who has been playing football for more than 60 years.

Stan’s football journey began in England, where he played for his school team. Back then, every junior school had a Saturday competition, and football was a way of life. He started kicking a ball around the schoolyard at just seven years old in 1957, progressed into regular house team football at eight, and developed a love for the game that has never faded.

By the time he left England in 1960, Stan was playing as a right fullback. The game, he says, has changed enormously since those early days.

“We used to play a 2-3-5 formation with five forwards,” Stan recalled. “That’s what football looked like when I was ten.”

He began as a right winger or midfielder before settling into defence, learning the art of jockeying, positioning and stopping attackers from cutting inside. His school team would travel up to 17 miles for matches a long journey in 1950s England.

Stan moved to Australia in 1960 and was playing competitive football by 1962 as a 12-year-old centre-half. He honed his skills against strong clubs such as Sydney Hakoah and Pan Hellenic, earning selection for Eastern Suburbs District, which effectively competed at State League level against teams like Bankstown and Gladesville.

He even represented Eastern Suburbs as a goalkeeper at age 12, before transitioning to inside left in 1964 a role equivalent to today’s attacking midfielder.

“If I knew then what I know now,” Stan laughed, “I would’ve been a very good player.”

Stan’s playing career continued well into adulthood. He enjoyed success with St Marys Band Club, winning the Division One championship in 1986 at the age of 36 after three seasons with the club. He also played in the Business Houses competition, lining up against quality players including Raul Blanco and Dave Watson.

Off the field, Stan has given just as much to the game. He spent 25 years on committees at Prospect United, played in a separate buffers competition in Blacktown, and took part in summer football including seven-a-side for more than two decades.

His connection with Doonside Hawks came through family, with his son playing at the club. Stan also coached an Under 16 girls’ side, including his daughter, made up of 16 players aged 13 to 16 seven of them brand new to the game. In 2006, the team set a Prospect United goal-scoring record with 76 goals and reached the grand final, a record only recently surpassed.

These days, Stan describes himself as a bit of a “dog’s body”, passing on knowledge and teaching players how to play smart football. His enthusiasm hasn’t waned, and he admits the game has been his crutch.

For the past 25 years, he’s played football winter and summer for around 42 weeks of the year. His favoured role is wearing the number six, transitioning play from defence into attack through the midfield.

A lifelong Manchester United supporter, Stan was delighted to see his beloved Red Devils recently defeat Manchester City.

Among his proudest sporting moments were playing mixed netball with his daughter at age 62 despite the soreness that followed and lining up in Over 35s alongside his son at age 64, upgrading into his son’s premiership-winning midfield side.

For Stan Gurling, football has never just been a game.

“It’s a way of life.”