Vets back in action after charity runs

AFC Portchester Vets returned to action at the weekend after a gruelling March spent pounding the streets for charity.

Squad members - whose ages range from 35 to 48 - were challenged to raise money for the Portchester Food Pantry project.

The brainchild of player Peter Sanderson, the squad were given a pre-March target of running 1,200 miles in the month between them, with the aim of raising £1,000.

Both totals were smashed, with the squad running a total of 1,405 miles and raising over £1,600.

Sanderson racked up 200 miles in the 30-day period, averaging 6.5 miles a day. He also ran the jointlongest single run - 20 miles - along with Keith Ashton whose March total was 181 miles.

‘A few couldn’t reach their targets due to injuries or they were just too stretched,’ reported Sanderson, ‘but others stepped up and went way beyond their initial targets to make sure we reached the team targets.’

It was Sanderson’s third charity running challenge since the first lockdown was introduced last March.

First, he ran a marathon in the road where he lives to raise money for AFC Portchester youth teams he manages an under-9 side himself.

Then, last November, Sanderson and Warren Chebby ran 5k a day to raise funds for the Food Pantry, a scheme initially based at AFC Portchester FC last spring but since last summer run out of the town’s Methodist Church.

Portchester, who play in the second tier of the Meon Valley Veterans League, were back in action on Sunday in a friendly at Hawks’ Westleigh Park.

They took on Team Figgins - one of the sides competing in this year’s Friends Fighting Cancer football tournament which will be played at Westleigh Park and Portchester’s Crest Finance Stadium this summer.

Sanderson netted five goals in a 7-7 draw with Matt Hague and Tristan Herbert also on target.