Nicola McAllister is dreaming of helping Scotland to Footgolf Euro glory in Turkey – but needs help in getting there.
McAllister, 39, from Airdrie, will represent Footgolf Association of Scotland at the European Championships, which runs from December 7 to 13 at Cullinan Links Golf Club, and hopes somebody might step in with some last-minute sponsorship.
Scotland are in Group B with hosts Turkey, Netherlands, Spain and Sweden in Antalya, with a men’s, women’s and seniors’ section in the tournament.
And Nicola hopes it promotes the fast-growing sport, particularly amongst women.
She said: “It would be absolutely amazing to come back with a medal or a trophy. Who doesn’t want to represent their country, do well and win something?
“That would be absolutely fantastic, a real source of pride.
“It’s a group stage, initially, we’ll be playing four other teams. Then it’s on to the quarter-finals and semi-finals and, fingers crossed, into the finals.
“There are three separate tournaments, with the men, women and seniors, and it is mixed.
“There will be women playing singles, and in the mixed. I’ll likely be in the mixed pairs.
“I qualified for it through the national rankings. There have been tournaments that you can qualify through, but I did it through the rankings.”
Nicola and husband Robert play Footgolf together, and she reckons it’s something a lot more people can get involved in.
She said: “This is my second year playing and I got started through my husband. It’s a nice thing to do together.
“We play up at Cumbernauld Footgolf, that’s our local team, up at Palacerigg.
“That’s where our league games and everything are, and there are tournaments all through the year, competitions and tours, so it’s really fun, really good.
“It has really taken off, and we’re trying to push it as much as possible, particularly for the women as well – it would be great to see more women involved.
“If anybody is thinking about taking up Footgolf, I would say definitely give it a go. It’s so inclusive, anybody can do it, all abilities and ages take part.
“You don’t need to be really fit, you don’t need to have played football.
“It’s so welcoming, everybody’s really friendly, and it’s a really good way to do some light exercise.
“It’s really enjoyable.”
Anybody who would be willing to sponsor Nicola during the Footgolf European Championships can do so by emailing [email protected]
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