Abbie Bolt: “Powerchair Football is my entire life!”

Abbie Bolt, despite having Spinal Muscular Atrophy has always had a passion for football.

She shared how her love formed in primary school and how she has always pushed herself into the sport. Abbie is now a 19 year old team captain playing for Premier side Nomad Knights PFC along with being on the Regional Development Pathway where she is training to represent England.

I sat down with Abbie to discuss all things Powerchair Football, her journey and the barriers Powerchair Football players face.

Abbie started her footballing journey in primary school despite the challenges that come with being physically disabled in a mainstream setting. She always wanted to be involved in any way she could which even meant being in goal. Whilst visiting Demelza Childrens Hospice, Abbie saw a poster advertising a local Powerchair Football team that she thought was “pretty cool”, and that’s where she found the opportunity to really get involved.

The team was known as Invicta where she trained under the management of her Dad. One of the barriers mentioned by Abbie is the extortionate price it is to get a Powerchair Football chair. Further into her career, with the introduction of new chairs, Abbie was forced to fundraise to make it possible to continue playing the game at the highest level. Luckily for her, a friend passed down a chair that she could use to start her footballing journey, though unfortunately, she had challenges with the battery, once again forcing her to continue the theme of being in goal to minimise movement. Abbie did not let this dampen her spirits and instead used it to her advantage of learning the game by observing her teammates. She believes this was a key part of her development as a player.

After leaving Invicta, Abbie moved on to play for Sevenoaks PFC with a goal of further developing as a player. During her time there, she won numerous awards and developed from a Regional Development Squad player to a National player in less than three years. After fearing losing her love for the sport due to a lack of playing minutes, Abbie decided to move to Nomad Knights PFC where she is now the captain. She wants to one day use her power as captain to reduce player costs which is a major barrier in this sport. Abbie sang her praises for her previous captain at Sevenoaks, Dan Stevens, who motivated her to become the player she is today.

As captain she has taken the responsibility of getting to know her players on an individual basis to then work out the best way to help them improve on the pitch. She was particularly excited about 13 year old, Bobby Allen, who in her words is “just incredible” and paid homage to his ability to communicate at such a young age. Finally she credited  her development at Nomad Knights PFC to having a coach who was also in a wheelchair as he could relate to the players and help them get the most out of their skills.

Powerchair Football is now Abbie’s “entire life”. Through it, she has found friends, community, love and acceptance proving how powerful this sport is at bringing together members of a marginalised community.

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