Yesterday, I played void deck soccer

A soon forgotten sport - void deck soccer

Boys around my age would have played void deck soccer in their primary and/or secondary school days. It usually happens after classes, at the nearest void deck beside the school compound.

I thought children these days would have missed out on void deck soccer, for a variety of reasons such as:
- free time after school is spent on tuition, CCA or other activities like badminton, swimming etc..
- kids these days find more entertainment in e-games rather than being outdoors
- void decks these days have become soccer-unfriendly:

Barriers added to deliberately discourage such activities

Anyway, yesterday I went for a quick jog around my neighbourhood after work. Whilst cooling down, I heard the familiar sounds of void deck soccer originating from nearby. Excited, I hopped over and was happy to see a group of primary school kids engaging in the sport!

It's been eons since I last saw children playing void deck soccer. I mean, I assumed kids these days would be too immersed in pursuing their own interests and activities? Why would they fix a time to gather at a void deck? What captivated me was that in that group of 8 children of different ages, there was a mixture of Chinese and Indians, and even a sporty-attired girl who was defending stoutly and bravely putting in tackles and blocks!

Already in my running gear, needless to say I asked to join in, and they agreed without hesitation. I had a really enjoyable time with them. The kids were full of laughter, enthusiasm and sportsmanship. Whenever the ball went out of bounds onto the carpark, at least one of them would sprint away to retrieve the ball. Whenever a goal was scored, the scorer would celebrate ecstatically. When someone tripped or fell to the ground, they would check if he/she was fine before continuing the game. When a passerby helped to retrieve the ball, more than one would shout out, "thank you!"

The evening was settled at 10-8 in my team's favour (for the record it was 5-7 when I joined, heh). Everyone packed up and bade separate ways. As I was walking home, two of the children cycled past me and said bye to me.

I really enjoyed the game! =)