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By 2007 I was a retired footballer with a fifteen-year professional career behind me. I felt like all of the love I had for the game that grew from the age of three-and-a-half, when I first started playing, to the age of sixteen, when I went professional, was my fuel. I had this enormous tank full of passion for the beautiful game, but that my professional pursuit had devoured it all and I found myself at 31 with almost nothing left, running on empty. I knew if was time to go because my dream had become a job.

When I played, if you were a professional sportsperson that was what you did. Moreover, that was all you did. A footballer with any other interests was considered a bad footballer, a distracted and unprofessional sportsperson. My love of design, music, food and fashion all had to be pushed aside of I wouldn’t be taken seriously. I was always on the outside because I liked things other than sport.

Things are different today, it seems like every footballer and his dog have a fashion label and a law degree, and from my point of view, that is the best thing that could have happened to Australian football.

A new culture is developing that recognises what I have always believed: football can transcend the boundaries of sport and find its place in other aspects of culture. It’s not a big leap to say that fashion and sport have a strong connection, but more and more artists, writers, designers, social activists and photographers who are dedicated to the game are emerging and revealing its inherent beauty and true power.

When I stepped away I took some time to develop my own ways of appreciating and celebrating football. I started playing with mates, attending games as a fan, I developed a career development program to help players who were in the position that I had been in. I spoke formally about the issue of mental health in sport, began writing about my passion and started my football blog, Local FC. It wasn’t until I began shooting player features for Fox Sports and photographing my first love for Nike Football that I found film and photography were my best vehicles for expressing my passion and presenting my perspective of the game.

“A Ball, A Pitch, A Dream” grew from this. It started with my journey towards falling back in love with football and rediscovering of why I loved it. It created an opportunity to remind professionals of where it all started and to inspire a new generation of players. No matter who you are, it all starts with a ball, a pitch, a dream.

W H E R E I T A L L B E G A N

All photography and writing copyright of Chad Gibson 2013 (unless otherwise stated) | localfc.com.au

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I was very fortunate to be invited to cover the African Nations Cup last year which was held in Western Sydney. The event truly captured the spirit and the power of football. Being born to South African migrant parents in the West, to me this tournament was somewhat of a ‘coming home.’ It not only recognised the significance of Western Sydney as the home of Australian football, it also acknowledged the fundamental role of migrant communities in developing a uniquely Australian football culture.

Football in this country is often viewed with blinders on, with a limited perspective that does not capture the true value of the game outside the white lines or beyond the ninety minutes. This tournament represents the opposite. It was initiated in 2004 by David Shekede with the idea of bringing together the African community in Western Sydney through a love of football, a love of family and a belief in the power of the game to change people, communities and futures.

For a large number of migrants who find themselves calling Australia their new home, such as these African tournament players, football is not only a way to integrate and connect themselves with Australia, it is a powerful connection to their homeland as well. Football acts as a bridge allowing migrants to adapt to life in a foreign country in a context where language may be a barrier. Football speaks a universal language and has the ability to break down barriers and reveal unity.

I feel as though the game continually reveals to me its power and beauty and this day was no exception. While covering the event the three main points I took away from the day were in fact the cornerstones to the creation of the tournament: the genuine love of the game, a love of family and community and the showcasing of inspiring talent - even the goalkeepers would nutmeg strikers!

Many of these players have lived through unconceivable tragedy and violence. These people have escaped terror, found refuge in Australia and have found a way to use football as a vehicle to maintain joy in their lives despite extreme adversity and as a means to connect with our local community and develop a home here.

Western Sydney Wanderers Youseff Hersi and Kwabina Appiah Kubi attended the event to show their support. When I spoke with Kwabina he commented on his own success and the support he receives from the African community paraphrasing an African proverb: “If one of us makes it, we all make it.” It was inspiring witnessing the tournament players’ reactions when Kwabs wished them good luck. Despite many of them meeting this day for the first time, living in different suburbs, coming from different countries, they were all family, all inspired and behind Kwabina and Youseff ’s success. I will definitely be back this year to see the next chapter of the African Cup evolve.

A F R I C A N N A T I O N S C U P A U S T R A L I A

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Name, Pitch, Role:

My name’s John, I’m the Fraser Park groundsman. For 5 years I’ve been maintaining our pitch, mowing and rolling the grass, repairing, doing the irrigation, fertilising, it just never stops! What can I say, I’m wrapped! Nothing more beats it, coming here everyday, looking at a soccer field – it’s like a dream come true. This is my office I wouldn’t swap it for the world. I tell you straight. I love it.

You’re not just the groundsman though, you also coach here. You

mentioned you have a coaching philosophy?

It’s a theory I discovered a few years ago when one of the kids said something to me. This 7-year-old said to me: “Coach, you tell me but by the time I get home I forget!” I figured, I tell you something, you’ll forget it, I show you something you may remember, but it’s only when I involve the kids and myself that they will understand. You also need to encourage them, make them believe in themselves, that is a must.

This dream job really came about because of something terrible

happening to you – do you mind talking about that?

Yeah, absolutely. One day I was just enjoying my all-age afternoon game with my mates and the following day I suffered a stroke. I’ve ended up with a blood clot lodged in the right side of my brain now. I’ve had a few reconstructions over the years, but I was told by the doctors to stop playing soccer – no more head-butting, no more running, no more nothing. So that really, really upset me. But that’s what got me into the coaching. One door closed but another door opened which I’m grateful for. I’ve already achieved helping kids get into Youth Development. It’s the best thing I’ve done in soccer, it’s not for me it’s for them. Till the day I die, if I can coach till the day I die I’ll be happy. I have kids today who are 14 and they come up and shake my hands and we’re good mates. That’s what its all about.

When did you first fall in love with football?

It was in 1969. I remember my mum walking me to the park to play soccer at Mackey Park with the Red Devils Under-6s. It was in 1969 at Mackey Park. Yeah and 2003 was the last year I stopped playing soccer.

J O H N T H E G R O U N D S M A N

The first annual Local FC Cup was held in October 2012 on a crisp but sunny day at the NCIE in Redfern. Created by Huw Bennett, Gabe Knowles and myself, the one-day tournament was the first of many events we aim to hold as a way of bringing together Sydney’s creative communities from fashion, design, music and food through their love of the beautiful game.

Huw, Gabe and myself have a friendship born out of football. Many coffees /beers (in no particular order) have been shared exchanging banter over every thread of the game we love. So many of the friends who surround us, all from various walks of life, have come together through football. We decided it was time to create our own tournament. We invited teams based loosely on companies and finished with a tournament filled with individuals who inspired us (mostly off the field).

As part of the Cup us lads put on a coaching clinic for Indigenous children at the NCIE during the week. We were inspired by how naturally gifted the children were despite none of them being footballers, with AFL and rugby as their codes of choice. They were enthusiastic, eager to learn and most of all a lot of fun to be around.

Teams comprised of eight companies from Sydney’s urban creative community: Vanishing Elephant, Insight, Havaianas, Grifters Brewing Co., Nowhere Famous, Holler, NCIE and Johnson Athletic. All went into combat for the inaugural Cup’s bragging rights. We were lucky to have the support of several sponsors with jerseys supplied by Nike, choripans on the BBQ by El Mercado, refreshments by Red Bull.

Local FC Cup 2 will follow, as well as a few other projects we have in the pipeline. In the meantime, let’s not forget: Football will always be the winner!

T H E L O C A L F C C U P

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Més Que Un Club: More Than a Club - A motto that defines Barcelona or Barça as they are more commonly known. What does it mean to be more than a club? Barça has become a symbol of Catalan culture. It represents the people (the supporters themselves own and operate the club). As the current generation of the Barça team is praised as the best ever, the history and culture of this famous jersey means so much more.

My eyes open to the field of dreams and I stand in the terraces in awe. I marvel at the beauty of the stadium, the memories made here and the history waiting to made. I become fixated with the man cutting the immaculate pitch, creating his masterpiece. His commitment to creating perfection, his respect of an historic patch of grass trampled week after week by an historic group of people, his profound understanding of the masses that fill the seats which engulf this grass island and their motivation for being there. Maybe this man truly is the embodiment of ‘Més Que Un Club.’

A D A Y A T H E C A M P N O U

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This jersey may be ridiculed as the worst Australian jersey of all time but for me, it’s one of the greatest. This was the jersey my brother and the Olyroos wore when qualifying for the ‘92 Barcelona Olympics, a game where the football minnows accomplished the unthinkable. The Australians conquered the masters of total football, the Dutch, on their own pitch.

I was blessed to have a brother who played in a golden generation of Australian football. Okon, Zelic, Markovski, Blagojevic, the list is endless and as a little brother I was allowed to tag along and get a football education money cannot buy.

This jersey was part of my education, a young teenager watching his brother and team take on the mighty Dutch and win. I sat in the living room with my dad in the wee hours of the morning wearing one of my bro’s older jerseys. Proud. Then one of the greatest moments in Australian football history, with time eclipsing a fading dream, from an impossible angle, a shot that will always remain in my mind - “ZELIC!” And the rest is history.

So this is part of our football history and this was my education. Today, ugly jerseys and bad mullets still make me smile.

O L Y R O O S V S H O L L A N D : O L Y M P I C Q U A L I F I E R ‘ 9 2

N A T I O N A L I N D I G E N O U S F O O T B A L L F E S T I V A L ,A L I C E S P R I N G S N . T .

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A N Y T I M E

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Jessica Hilltout is a photographer born and based in Belgium, having studied in the UK and spent time all over the globe. Her work is powerful, sensitive and evocative, finding poetry in the banal, revealing: “To me, there is hidden beauty in the ordinary and great beauty in the overlooked.” Hilltout’s book of photography, AMEN – Grassroots Football, explores the nature and power of football in Africa. We feel honoured that she shared with us her experience of working on AMEN and her stories about what football means to her and to Africa.

Have you always loved football?No actually, but I’ve always loved Africa. During my travels in Africa over the past 10 years I often came across hand-made balls and noticed how important football was. With the World Cup 2010 happening on African soil, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to show what goes on all over the continent far from the big stadiums, the money, the corporate sponsors etc., to show the sport in its purest form

What does football mean to Africa?It is one of life’s essentials. Farming, Food, Family and Football. In small villages out in the bush, football is played everyday, it brings joy to so many. Football is the only thing that is accessible to everyone... whether they have a ball or not. It is a way for them to forget about their troubles of the day, something they play just for pure pleasure.

What is the most powerful aspect of football?Its ability to bring people together and the fact that it can be played by everyone. It is the most democratic sport in the world.

Why did you choose to document your journey through football?I decided to do a project on football in Africa, so I chose 10 countries to explore in order to dig deep into the subject. What interested me was to show during the World Cup 2010 what the world would not see, to show all those little world cups which are happening all over the continent everyday, where people are marking pitches, scoring goals but above all having fun.Through football I wanted to speak of a certain Africa, where people have simple needs and huge hearts. Through football I wanted to speak of the authenticity and ingeniousness of a continent that manages to do so much with so little.

What was the meaning of your book title ‘AMEN’?AMEN was what most people said to me when I left villages and towns... “AMEN to your project Jessica,” as in, we agree with it, we believe in it, we support it. Later as the concept of the book came together I thought football could be compared to a religion. The quote which sums up that the best is: “In Africa football is not a religion but it’s everything a religion should be.” (Ian Brower, AMEN) The title AMEN then became evident as the perfect choice. On top of that it’s a universal word just like football is universal.

What was the most amazing thing you saw in your travels?My travels were full of anecdotes. One of the funniest, most touching things was in Mozambique in a small village called Pacasse. I had organized

a friendly match between the Pacasse team ‘Vento Inha’ and the neighbouring village team ‘Barcelona.’ Not only was the field typical of Africa, dusty, surrounded by boababs with cows on the field, but when the Barcelona Team arrived they were wearing big coats and eskimo hats in 50° weather! I later realized that they were imitating players from European teams who walk onto the field with big coats during winter. How funny, how touching.Or in Chicome village Mozambique, a village far out in the bush, I met the village team. They sometimes play matches against neighbouring villages. They then leave for three days. A day to get there by foot, a day for the match and a day to walk home!

What does the ball mean to the people you photographed?Almost every boy or man in Africa plays football. Every young boy learns to make a football. Older boys play with manufactured balls. In fact, 70% of the male population walk around with football shirts on whether they are playing or not. The ball is a necessity on the continent. Most play just for the pure pleasure and to forget their troubles of the day, others play more professionally and dream of becoming stars. Whatever it may be it all revolves around a ball.Balls in Africa, whether they be hand-made or manufactured, are beautiful. They are symbols of the solidarity and ingeniousness, they may be tired looking but they are respected, they hang onto life for the sake of teams and villages to whom they are an essential ingredient in life.

What does the ball mean to you?The ball to me means joy.

For more of Jessica Hilltout’s powerful work visit: jessicahilltout.com

AMEN – Grassroots Football is available on Amazon America & UK (Although Australian customers may need to contact her directly!)

Photograph: ‘Orlando,’ Jessica Hilltout

A M E N - G R A S S R O O T S F O O T B A L L

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The ball is like my girlfriend.

We’ve known each other

since I could walk,

We grew up together

We travelled together

The ball has been priority

number one in my life,

Since I was four-years-old.

We’ve had some good times and

Just as many hard times as well.

Osama Malik

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A lifelong football fan, J.P. Plunier sees football the way I do, his thoughts and views on football in society/design are so aligned with mine that at times I felt I was interviewing myself. Football inspires his design process (his famous take on the Breton sweater is based on a football long sleeve jersey cut). His retro football collection is world class and holds exclusively the best. It was truly inspirational to chat to J.P. He had to be a good person being brought up on Roy of the Rovers and is a Gooner.

Name and who you are? Concept behind Feal Mor?JP Plunier. I’ve spent my adult life being a photographer, producer, manager and designer. A design expression born from a childhood of travelling the world with my Breton French Style.

Why are you inspired by football?Football is my earliest memory of friendship. My best friend Simon Yeo (from Kent) and I went to the British school in Columbo Ceylon, he was a Chelsea fan. And my parents had friends in Paris who lived near Parc des Princes and I could hear the games when we would go to their apartment. Roy of the Rovers, Bobby Charlton, and my dad’s favourite team Red Star Paris were all early childhood memories.

Where did the collection start?When I lived in Ceylon, it was under British rule and I ended up with a British Sports Annual. I saw the uniforms and kits in there and I really wanted one. There really wasn’t much in the way of kits to buy, especially in Ceylon, but in 1970 I discovered I liked Arsenal when my family and I went on a trip to Hong Kong. There was a sporting goods store that had an Arsenal jersey - the white sleeves and red shirt impressed me and I got one. I Photos: Top Left: J.P. Plunier: Feal Mor, courtesy of Vans Syndicate; Bottom Left: Lil Guy, courtesy of Feal Mor; Right: Chris Gibbs brings the Mor to the

Paris shows, Tommy Ton for GQ, courtesy of Feal Mor Monoblogue

F E A L M O R

don’t remember if it was real or not, it was in Hong Kong, it might have been bootlegged… The next big thing was seeing the 1974 World Cup final in colour on TV and I had known about Cruyff but had never seen him play. Seeing him live, everything he did inspired me so much I got his poster. I wasn’t even a big poster guy but Cruyff was like Neil Young but could play sports. He could play like hell.... cool long dude with long hair, you could tell he just looked smart... Cruyff made me forget about music for a while - I was a music fan. George Best looked as cool as any musicians or actors, but when you say Cruyff move, he was fucking awesome and looked like a panther. He was who you wanted to be. There was no denying the guy.

I am a Gooner. Arsenal through and through. My idols are The King Henry and Ian Wright. But I support Arsenal for the culture of the club and the way you must carry yourself if you are representing the Arsenal. Who do you support and why?I am an Arsenal fan, probably for the same reasons you like the club. I discovered it kind of randomly and fell in the love with the shirt before I saw any of the games. A bit later I became friends with a guy named Raja Do, who was also an Arsenal fan. It’s a long story, but he ended up living at my house for at least a year and we ended up talking about Arsenal for a year. We were in Japan. By that time, I only wore red and white Adidas gazelles or red and white Adidas Dolphins.

Are we seeing football inspire fashion and vice versa, fashion inspire football?Probably both at this point. I have certainly seen things that we have been doing at Feal Mor over the last 10 years, re-emerge from some of the biggest sports companies and in my own secret way, I am flattered.

Why do football/surfing seem to be the only three sports that the creative industry looks to?Surfing, which was also a big part of my life, is a huge inspiration of all creative. The kind of life that it portrays, freedom, beauty and a certain minimalism - purity of expression. Football is a whole different thing. It is more of a group identification as befits a team sport and at the highest level, the legions of supporters that make a soccer stadium vibrate so flying club colours or even subtle signals such as the colour of your trainers can give you an incredibly empowered feeling walking down the street.

With football and the creative community coming together, are we looking at a renaissance in football?Absolutely. I mean there are probably more graphic artists doing reasonably good work with work of icons at the past and the present, using club colours and historic fixtures, to create a kind of international language for the cognoscenti.

You have been talking about a golden era in sport design, what do you mean by this?After a couple of decades of incredibly unflattering style, sports design is finally coming back around to something that I appreciate. In the very late 80’s and early 90’s basketball style became significant, it became bad style by the way. This developed from a return to 50’s surf style. There were these trunks called jams, baggy and long, (the influence of So Cal sportswear is not to be neglected) and somehow, in some style Kurt Rambis/South Bay/surf jams mash-up, somebody decided to make basketball shorts long and baggy. Parallel to this was the increasing baggy look for hip-hop. With the zoot-suit derived Mexican “Ben Davis/Dickey’s” worn baggy cinched with a woven belt and the East Coast version, the riker’s sag. That gave way to XXL culture, elastic waistbands and expanding waistlines. In football that turned into the most unstylish era of jerseys. That goes back to my pillow case theory - I hated seeing Paul Gascoigne or Zidane flying around the pitch wearing shirts that looked four times too big for them. That’s when I stopped collecting jerseys. As cool as cholos looked with their Pendletons and pressed dickeys, the Premier League clouds floating across the pitch looked silly as hell. Even though it wasn’t for sale, I made Feal Mor soccer kits and used to wear them to my Sunday pick-up games. I changed the cut of the Breton striped sailor shirt to be more like a soccer jersey. I have always been partial to the long-sleeved jerseys.

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Favourite footballer of all time: As strange as it is since I hate Man Utd with a passion - my favourite player of all time is Eric Cantona. An amazing player and a brilliant personality!

First football memory: Going to see Sunderland play at Roker Park, the old Sunderland ground with my Dad - I was 5, it was before the Hillsborough changes. Despite my poor Dad’s early efforts I still ended up supporting Newcastle!

Favourite team: Though they drive me insane and cause me constant sorrow I do love my team - Newcastle.

Football’s place in modern society: It’s called the beautiful game for a reason; it brings people of all walks of life together. I’ve had so many fantastic experiences all over the world that have come about from this game and met so many brilliant people (yourself included!) due this shared love. As football lovers we have a duty of care to ensure it’s never again known as a game for hooligans or violence. It should unite people not divide them.

Favourite footballer of all time: John Barnes.

First football memory: I vaguely remember watching highlights of Craig Johnston and his FA cup final goal on replay, but I distinctly remember Cantona’s volley in the FA cup final. Not happy.

Favourite team: Liverpool!

Favourite football moment: Liverpool’s 2005 champions league win. I remember thinking about going to sleep at half time, glad I didn’t, then Dudek’s save in ET from Sheva’s header, all amazing.

Football’s place in modern society: Definitely, it’s alive and kicking and I think it’s progressively maturing and changing from the lad persona. It’s the most popular sport in the world; it’s natural that culture derives from something like this.

Favourite footballer of all time: Roberto Baggio

First football memory: Playing at lunchtime at primary school with mates.

Favourite team: SD Huesca (in Segunda División España)

Favourite football moment: Being at game where Australia qualified for 2006 world cup v Uruguay in 2005

Football’s place in modern society: Brings people together - across cultures and socio-economic backgrounds.

Favourite footballer of all time: Zlatan Ibrahimovic

First football memory: Wearing the sky blue and white of the mighty Connells Point Rovers.

Favourite team: Notts Forest

Favourite football moment: Could be the ‘13 champions league final?

Football’s place in modern society: Habit/hobby

LISA HALL, THE ICONIC, HEAD OF WOMEN’S APPAREL

HUW BENNETT, VANISHING ELEPHANT

FELIX CHAN, VANISHING ELEPHANT

MIGUEL SICARI, NOWHERE FAMOUS, DIRECTOR

Something special was in the air that cold night in Nepean. The Western Sydney Wanderers’ first official game was a night that old and new football came together. Were there doubters at the start? Hell yes. That night I witnessed the birth of the R.B.B. (Red and Black Bloc), a small section of maybe one hundred already in tune. Running around and weaving through people to reach the front, kids of all ethnicities were desperate to catch a glimpse of their soon to be heroes. That night, these kids were handed idols and shown a pathway to a dream of playing for their team from their home - the west of Sydney. It didn’t take any time for the players to realise that this was the start of an inspiring journey. Steam evaporated off their domes as they stretched down after their momentous first game, the significance of this game in western Sydney history began to sink in.

Old and new football stood together on that night. Our game is built on rich history, particularly in the west of Sydney with the glory days of the N.S.L.: Sydney United, Sydney Olympic and Marconi; and the greats of the past like Tony Henderson, Peter Katholos and Manis Lamond. WSW was definitely not built in a year, the past provided them with profound and unshakable foundations.

I grew up and received my football education in the west. Witnessing Poppa’s palpable passion, the sincere love of the players for their club and the strong culture that is developing inspires fans to become a part of it. Am I a fan? Mos’ def.

F O R T H E D A Y O N E F A N S

Eleven players step across the white line as one,

The atmosphere, the lights, the fans, all a blur

Green grass, white lines, a net and a ball, in focus.

Two teams set to battle,

Victory is the goal.

Uniting in fight for ninety minutes to create history.

Ref’s arm in the air, whistle blows,

The battle has begun.

The clock falls from ninety

Yet these moments are frozen,

Each battle forever trapped in history.

The union of grace and beauty

Powered by speed and strength

The ball hits the crossbar, a turning point

Players’ fatigue, the end is near

A moment of magic

Striker VS keeper

The ball lay in the back of the net.W h i s t l e b l o w sThe struggle to walk over the white lineThe lights go out…

c h a d g i b s o n

A B A L L A P I T C H A D R E A M

All photography and writing copyright of Chad Gibson 2013 (unless otherwise stated) Design by Cecilia Humphrey for Ascension Theory | A BALL A PITCH A DREAM © 2013

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