Cambridge Amputee Football Team Seeks Permanent Training Base

Imagine loving football so much you'd drive four hours each way just to play a single match on crutches.

That's the reality for Duncan Rumbelow's amputee football team, recently adopted by Cambridge City FC. Now he's working to change that by creating a permanent training base at the club's stadium in Sawston, offering professional coaching for amputees of all ages.

The team is one of just four in England playing in the England Amputee Football Association league. The others are Chelsea, Everton, and Scottish team AFAS, meaning competition is sparse and travel is brutal.

Players come from Ireland, Newcastle, Portsmouth, and beyond to train together. Most practice with their local clubs between matches, but it's not the same as training with teammates who truly understand the sport's unique demands.

The seven-a-side game is played on crutches without prosthetics for outfield players, who are typically single-leg amputees. Goalkeepers usually have arm amputations, and the sport swaps throw-ins for kick-ins while ditching the offside rule entirely.

The Ripple Effect

Player Izzy Papandronicou, who plays for England's amputee women's team, knows firsthand how access changes lives. She lost part of her leg at 14 due to a rare bone condition that caused repeated fractures, enduring more than 20 surgeries before choosing amputation.

"I felt too disabled to play normal football, but not disabled enough to play disabled football," she said. Finding amputee football let her play again, and she hasn't stopped since.

Cambridge City adopted the team in February, giving them a club identity ahead of the Amputee Cup Final in June at St. George's Park. Papandronicou says the support has built a "brilliant community" around the sport.

Rumbelow plans to start with taster sessions at the Cambridge ground, hoping to attract more players and prove the facilities can support full-time professional training. His father played for Cambridge City in the 1950s before moving to Cambridge United, making the partnership especially meaningful.

"The more bases we can get in different parts of the country, the bigger the sport will grow," Papandronicou said.

One permanent training facility could turn four-hour road trips into local practices, giving more amputees the chance to play the sport they love.