A New Zealand over-50s team — the self-named ‘All Greys’— have won the inaugural six-nation Thailand Masters tournament.
The event was held in Sattahip, the same venue where the Seniors World Cup (for over-40s) is being held from June 1-7, 2025.
READ MORE: New Zealand over-40s return to Thailand, chasing glory at Seniors World Cup >>>>
New Zealand coach Kerry Bartlett said the over-50s team were largely comprised of players who had previously played at Seniors World Cup tournaments before “age caught up with some of us, and we got too old, too slow or got dropped for younger players but still had a desire to continue to play footy.”
The over-50s tournament was played as a round robin competition.
Hosts Thailand were runners-up while England finished third.
New Zealand score against Vietnam.
New Zealand went through the tournament unbeaten, scoring 13 goals and conceding once.
Bartlett said two of the six teams play all year, training together and travelling to play internationally, “compared to the fact I had not seen eight of our players play before.”
Twelve of the New Zealand squad had played at previous SWC tournaments, which have been running for 16 years.
He said the success of the inaugural over-50s event had led to interest from three or four potential new entries next year, helping to grow the tournament into a replica of the SWC.
New Zealand team
Nobby Stiles, Kerry Bartlett, John Osti, Scott Clayton, Jimmy Cudd, Grant Duncan, Ersel Kilizay, Marcin Marchlewicz, Craig Ogborn, Alan Reis, Nick Lucas, Jason Chewins, Darren Fletcher, Max Laustsen, Trev Rapley, Brendon Bishop, Len Tui, Julien Peach, Jorge Kiriyama.
Coach: Kerry Bartlett. Manager: Dakota Lucas.
Results
Over-50s Masters Tournament
Game played Sunday May 25, 2025
New Zealand 2 (Grant Duncan, Jason Chewins)
Thailand 0
Game played Monday May 26, 2025
England 0
New Zealand 1 (Nick Lucas)
Game played Tuesday May 27, 2025
Uruguay 1
New Zealand 3 (Grant Duncan 2, Jason Chewins)
Game played Thursday May 29, 2025
Vietnam 0
New Zealand 7 (John Osti, Nick Lucas 2, Julien Peach 2, Jason Chewins)
Game scheduled for Friday May 30, 2025
IR Iran
New Zealand – won by default
This story was first published on June 2, 2025.