Press Association football reporter Adrian Curtis is playing football for England in the World Cup this summer.
But
he runs no risk of breaking his metatarsals: Curtis will be donning his
nation's colours on the table-football pitch – the game formerly known
as Subbuteo.
He will be competing against 23 other nations alongside son Samuel, 11, who is captaining the England under-15s side.
Curtis
said: "It is a great honour to be picked for the main England team, as
the previous two years I have played for the veterans. I played the
game as a kid but I only got involved a few years ago when Sam said he
wanted to play competitively.
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"Thanks to the internet we found
there was a thriving league set-up in the UK and a world game that is
highly competitive. It has snowballed from there really and it is
astonishing how seriously it is viewed by the Maltese and Italians in
particular. I've often had the hair-drier treatment which comes when
they loudly shout 'Goal' right in your face."
Curtis added: "I'm
not sure what the guys at Howden make of it all really but I think I
must be one of the few reporters to have his fingers insured for
something other than work."
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