Football coach comes out of retirement for one last game

Ron Fuller, 82, rekindled a lifelong love of football when he came out of retirement to coach local Canal Turn FC for a friendly match. Ron used to play for Wembley, before getting his coaching badge at Luton and going on to become a player, coach and manager for Harpenden FC. His trip to coach Canal Turn FC was arranged as part of Belong at Home, at Belong Atherton.
In a life filled with sporting achievements, including swimming the English Channel, Ron Fuller's proudest moment was the time that he trained Harpenden FC by making the whole team accompany him on the London marathon. He also speeded up their reaction times by persuading the team to take up table tennis.
Speaking of the recent football match, Ron said: "I want to thank all the players of Canal Turn FC for listening to me the way that they did. It was a brilliant game and it felt great to put my coaching skills to good use again."
Born in Willesden, London in 1931, Ron was later transferred to Manchester by his employer, BAE Systems. In Manchester he met his wife, Dorothy, who shares his birthday. They both now live in an apartment at Belong Atherton. Although Ron has recently been diagnosed with dementia, he still lives a very active life, supported by the Belong at Home team.
Claire Culshaw, Belong at Home Coordinator for Belong Atherton, said: "As soon as we arrived, Ron was meeting the players to have a kick around and talking team tactics. He gave advice from the sideline and at half time the lads all rallied around to listen to his motivating team talk. They really took onboard what Ron was saying, and it was heartwarming to see the different generations coming together over a game of football.
"Ron has been using the Belong at Home service for over a year now, and it makes a big difference to his quality of life. Our home care services aim to meet the needs of the individual, rather than asking anybody to fit our needs, so where some people might want help with domestic chores or doctors appointments, others prefer to spend the time socializing or going out for leisure purposes. Knowing how passionate Ron is about coaching, we were really happy to find an opportunity to get him involved again."