Britain’s oldest striker is still banging in the goals for his local soccer team three times a week—at the grand old age of 90.
Sprightly Mike Fisher—nicknamed ‘Ninja’ by teammates—averages three goals a game following an amateur footballing career that began 75 years ago in 1949.
The former RAF veteran turns out every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for two local walking soccer teams after he started playing for them at age 82.
Before that, the granddad-of-two played up until his 40s before taking a break from the beautiful game.
Falling back in love with the sport in his 80s, he now regularly appears for Old Corinthians, who play at non-league Rushall Olympic’s ground in Walsall.
The goal machine even celebrated his 90th birthday with teammates in late February by bagging five goals in a game against opponents 40 years younger than him.
“They all call me ‘Ninja,'” Mike admits, “because they say I’m gone in the blink of an eye, just like that. One minute you think you’ve collared me and the next minute I’m gone and the ball is in the back of the net.”
“If you ask anyone if they play with Mike Fisher, they won’t have a clue who you’re on about, but if you say ‘do you play with Ninja’ they will know who you mean,” he said.
Mike began playing when he was 14 in the Luton and District League in his native Bedfordshire before he moved to the Midlands after meeting his wife, Doris. He fell for Doris in Blackpool, where he was stationed with the RAF.
MORE GOLDEN OLDIES: 90-Year-old Earns Judo Belt Level Reached By Only 6 People in the Nation
Sunday league soccer around the country is famously competitive and forms a deep part of squad members’ lives. A Luton Town fan, Mike is no doubt fiercely celebrating the return of his team to the Premier League for the 2023-2024 season, having been relegated in 1992, and floating between the third, fourth, second, and even fifth leagues for a generation.
“I still love football and I’ll keep going for as long as I can—or at least while I’m still scoring on a regular basis. That feeling of scoring goals never gets old—even if I am,” he said, speaking like a true striker.
“I’ve lost count of how many I’ve scored but I get four or five a game usually and have been playing walking soccer three times a week regularly for eight years. A few times I have scored ten in a match,” he said.
After serving in Libya, Egypt, and Iraq in 1954 as an RAF motor mechanic, Mike married Dorris and moved to Blackpool where they had two children. Dorris passed away in 2020.
MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: Five Classy Olympic Moments That Should Win a Gold Medal For Inspiration
“The football gives me a reason to still get up and out and stay fit and active. I don’t want to be sitting in a chair all day long. I began playing in Luton when I was around 14/15 and I played as a forward or as wide forward as it was known then,” he said.
“I played for a team called Yale once I moved up to the Black Country and then played with Wednesfield Civil Defence when I was around 33/34.”
“It wasn’t until I moved into my flat in Bloxwich that we went along to this community center and they asked what sort of thing I enjoyed doing,” said Mike. “I said I used to play football and they mentioned the walking football, although I thought I’d be way too old at 82, I just gave it a go.”
INSPIRING SENIOR CITIZENS: This Grandad is All-Action at Aged 92: ‘I do martial arts daily’ (Watch)
“All of a sudden, I started playing against people in their 50s and 60s and realized I could still do it. These days I just wait up front to stick it in the net if I’m needed. I’m a bit like Jimmy Greaves, I suppose,” he continued. “He was the classic poacher, he used to hug the box and score goals from close range.”
Old Corinthians teammate Mike Stevenson, 76, said of ‘Ninj’ simply that “he comes, he scores.”
“Can there be anyone else still playing regular football at this great age?” he added.
SHARE This Inspiring Reminder That You’re Never Too Old To ___