Keith is one of almost 100 over-45 players who registered for the inaugural year of competition, with men as old as 70 taking part.

``When I heard about the 45s I thought, yeah, it would be nice to play against people a bit older,'' he said.

``It's better than chasing after 35-year-olds all over the pitch.''

It's also good to keep fit.

``I hate exercising by myself, I just don't do it,'' Pierce said.

``But when you're in a team, there's a good atmosphere and now I never miss training and always do the running.''