“Anything you can do we can do better” was the aim of the game for Haddenham Rovers Under 10 Colts as they completed their own lockdown challenge.
Grayham Roper’s team took on the virtual Wembley trip from Haddenham to the home of English football between May 12-19, the same task as what his wife Sarah’s Under 12 Girls squad did earlier this month.
Having already smashed their target of 73.8 miles between the village and Wembley Stadium in four days before completing the return journey, the team knew they were in touching distance of the girls team’s overall total of 202.8 miles.
So, players walked, ran and cycled to achieve their goal, with some going out twice, and on the last day of the challenge they managed to surpass the 25 miles needed to cover a total of 226.4 miles.
“My daughter plays for the under 12s and my son plays for the under 10s, and he thought his team could beat his sister’s team and do more miles,” Grayham said.
“We were very pleased at completing the challenge. They are a good group of players; they have a good team spirit and it’s nice to see take it on.”
From a 26km walk to a 20km bike ride, players pulled out all the stops during the challenge where the team has raised over £600 for the Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust.
Grayham did not expect the amount his team has raised from the challenge, which is now planning to carry on their fundraising efforts by helping Cambridge girl Imogen Papworth-Heidel with her keepy-uppy challenge for every key worker in the UK.
“We have got a WhatsApp chat for all the parents. We had a message saying, “can we beat the girls total?” and my under 10s players were enthused and took on the challenge.
“I thought a lot of players would take part and if we do something, everyone gets involved, but I did not expect the distance some would cover.
“One of the boys said he could do a 10k run, so my son got involved and wanted to beat him, so we ramped it up.
“The hot weather made it difficult, and not all have been playing sport, so fitness levels may not have been where they once were.
“It is phenomenal. Our aim was £300, and we have beaten that by quite a way, and the level of support has been fantastic.”
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