The Floating Football Kit
The Floating Football Kit
Ryde Sports F.C. was founded in 1888 and based at grounds in Partlands Avenue. They had many successes in their early years, with a dip in fortunes during the 1950s – 1970s, before they won Division 2 and Division 1 Wessex League titles. In the late 1990s they sadly ran into financial troubles and withdrew from competition. Today the town is represented by Ryde Saints based at Smallbrook Stadium.
Enjoy this short story by Charlie – The Forgetful Winter
(If you are in a group, perhaps take turns to read each story out loud in character!)
It was a frigid cold winter’s night in Ryde on the Isle of Wight and we could hear the children playing football and laughing manically.
The next day the team was told they had to get to a match on the mainland, but they all forgot their kit! If they didn’t have it, they would forfeit the match, but – wait – the assistant coach threw the bag of kit over the sea…! Dejectedly, the throw was just short of the boat, causing the kit to be forever floating in the Solent, lost by the team’s lack of awareness. All were thinking ‘What are we going to do? We have no kit!’ Was the game won or lost?
Three years later, they are at the end of the pier, open mouthed, when they see their bag of kit appear again. They found it soaked, deteriorated and ripped; so they decided to pick it up and take it either to a sewing shop or fix it by hand.
And listen to this short sound clip!
‘Strike a pose’ inspired by the story, capture it on camera, and add it onto social media. #RydeStepBackHistory
Now cross the Esplanade safely using the pedestrian crossing close to the pier and look for your next story.
Clue: Look for a place where you can buy presents for friends back home.
This is a self-guided trail. Your use of this trail is at your own risk which is operated on an ‘as is, as available’ basis. In no event shall The Earth Museum or its representatives be liable for any damages arising out of, or in any way connected with, the use of this trail.
NB This resource requires the latest versions of most common desktop browsers, and works best with Chrome and Firefox. It also supports most common current iOS and Android mobile devices. Strong WiFi/ phone signal coverage is required for full functionality.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of The Earth Museum. We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.