The North East is already renowned as the home to Newcastle United, but it’s soon to get another football team.
Russell Potter and Rob Woods have formed the Newcastle Pink Panthers, which is set to become the first gay football team in the region. The team is looking for new players to join them, as well as sponsors to provide financial support.
Russell and Rob are in the process of getting a team together, which will enable them to play against gay football teams from London, Manchester, Leeds and further afield. Their ultimate goal is to qualify for the GFSN, which is the gay premier league. If they manage to qualify for this, the Panthers will join Edinburgh’s Hot Scots to become the latest members of the prestigious pink football league.
Russell, 36, who is an operations manager from Washington, Newcastle, met Rob, 26, a salon manager from Stakeford in Northumberland, on the Internet after noticing that the pair had a mutual love of football. Rob said: “I was on the internet one day and I noticed Rob’s profile was asking if anyone was interested in starting up a gay football team in Newcastle. I have a massive interest in football and I have played a lot in the past, so I contacted him straightaway.”
Although they decided to start the team just three weeks ago, the pair has already received plenty of interest. Russell explains: “Everything has just rocketed…it is really taking-off. Within two days of advertising the team on the website fitlads.co.uk we had 15 potential players. Now we’re just looking for more players and sponsorship to get things rolling.”
The pair decided to call their team the Newcastle Pink Panthers after being inspired by Russell’s love for Sunderland Football Club. The pair somehow wanted to incorporate the Black Cats name into their own, so they decided on the Newcastle Pink Panthers. Russell said: “We decided on Panthers because I’m a Sunderland fan. We wanted Newcastle in there as well because, even though we want the team to cover the North East, we want Newcastle to be the base.”
Rob is particularly excited about starting up the Newcastle Pink Panthers, as he’s passionate about the game and has wanted to start up a gay team for some time. He said: “I have played football ever since I was given a football – I love it. It’s not just a hobby to me, and I wanted people in Newcastle to become more aware of the gay interest in football. When I moved to the North East five years ago, I really wanted to start up a gay team, I just needed to find other people who were interested.”
The Pink Panthers are not the only gay sports team in the North East; there is also a gay rugby team, The Ravens, who are always looking for new players.
Source:
IC Newcastle