Over-50 soccer league aims to inspire women

WAIPAHU — Come to Waipi‘o Soccer Complex on a Sunday morning, and games are in progress in all directions. The bustling facility has over 20 fields, and nearly all are occupied on the weekends.

Matches involving teams of nearly all ages and experience levels are being played simultaneously. In one of the back fields, a match involving elementary-aged boys is concluding. Coaches, seated parents and players alike can be heard yelling directions at each other. About 20 yards to the left of the young boys is a separate contest — it is there that the Women’s Island Soccer Association's over-50 division is holding its weekly set of matches.

Competition in the women's over-50 division, as evidenced by the day's first match between a team named Riggers and another named Leahi Moms, is intense. In staying true to the active nature of soccer, no player on the pitch is idling. One defender made a clean sliding tackle against an attacker, bringing her opponent to the ground and drawing a grunt. The banter between players is equally competitive and friendly.

In a season that lasts from January to May, there are five teams in the over-50 division. Two matches take place each week, with the fifth team taking a bye. Despite the battles that take place on the field, the league prides itself in fellowship among its players. After each match, members of both teams will have a potluck. Players from the first match will usually stick around and watch the second match, finding a place in the shade to sit while talking story.

The natural sense of community and pride in the league comes from its players understanding what they're doing is uncommon.

"I'm just happy I can do it. I'm happy to be able to spend time with friends outdoors and be active and really show future generations this is what people at this age do," Kathy Carey, 69, told Aloha State Daily. "It is a commitment. It's not like playing tennis or golf, where you can show up or not show up. You're committing to the team. You need to be here. And we all miss games for various reasons, but if you can, you come and you give it your best and try to be supportive of your teammates."

While some players in the league are in their mid-70s, Alison Okumura is one of the youngest and newest members of the league at 52. As she's observed others playing regularly, she's gained inspiration from those around her.

"Sundays were always quiet days for me. So, being here with the ladies, it's been really good," Okumura told ASD. "I'm inspired when you see them and you hear all the activities. You guys are, like, top tier. When I retire, I want to be just as active. You guys are so inspiring. You hear them talk about what they do — pickleball, they do swimming in the pool, they do water aerobics. They do line dancing and stuff like that with each other. It's inspiring for me to see what's in my future."

When it's time for Okumura's team, the Hale‘iwa Tsunami, to take the field against Holomua, both teams have gone through a brief warmup ahead of a match that features 40-minute halves with a water break midway through each half. Substitutions are unlimited and used liberally on sunny days such as this one.

Okumura, a striker for Hale‘iwa, scores within the first five minutes of the game. Hale‘iwa's goalkeeper, Manu, made a diving save on a penalty kick to preserve the team's lead.

Maintaining the decorum is the lone referee, Mike Fricano, a mustachioed man originally from New York, who blows his whistle and makes each call with conviction, even if players may not agree. "I was in the best position possible to see that," he sternly tells one after one of his determinations.

In multiple instances, Fricano didn't grant the teams their substitutions unless they were ready near the halfway line before the ball went out of play. "Where are the subs? OK, no subs."

But make no mistake. Fricano, who has officiated since 1984, including the last 23 years in Hawai‘i, loves being out there.

"This is why I'm here, because it's fun," Fricano, who referees matches of multiple age groups and genders across Hawai‘i, tells ASD at halftime. "These guys are great."

Holomua scored the equalizer approximately 10 minutes into the second half, and neither team would score again despite fierce efforts from both teams. One player was down with an apparent contact injury for about 30 seconds, only to be told "it's just soccer, baby," by a teammate. She got back up. "That was f****** beautiful," the same teammate says to another player after a well-placed through ball.

After the match, both teams sit in the shade to cool down. Okumura baked scones, just one of the appetizing options among the other baked goods. Her teammate, May Lapa, 66, points out that some members of the team have known each other long enough that they've seen each other become grandmothers. Okumura says teammates such as Lapa have encouraged her to keep moving and be social in order to keep her brain active.

"It's great. It's all in good fun," Okumura said. "It's worth the blisters on my feet to get to kick the ball and all that kind of stuff. I think a lot of people are used to saying 'I'm old' (as an excuse) but in reality, you won't move as good as you did when you were, say, 30 years old, but at least you're moving, right? That's what I get from the ladies, for sure. Once I stepped on the field with them, I told my husband there is no way I'm going to complain because they are sitting up and they come out and play."

Carey played for the men's team at both Punahou and Stanford since neither had a women's team when she first enrolled at each school. She helped the launch of Stanford's women's soccer program, then did the same for the University of Hawai‘i when it transitioned from a club sport to an NCAA Division I team in 1994. The soccer lifer has deep gratitude in having a place to play with her peers.

"To be able to do all I can do, play soccer and everything else at this age, I really feel blessed," she said. "We're all friends and teammates. Sometimes we play with each other, sometimes we play against each other. I think most of us try to keep in mind that we're just out here having fun. Win or lose, it's about having the opportunity to be here together."

Another player on Hale‘iwa, Cheryl Gamiao-Herrod, 62, is said to often lead the team in prayer during postgame potlucks. She says the team and the league has been like family for her ever since she lost her husband in 2023.

"These guys are my family. It's an extension of my family," Gamiao-Herrod said. "I look forward to games. I try to go to church, too. Just the camaraderie. Meeting people from the other team, just encouraging one another, saying 'good game' or 'nice goal,' just being positive. You can uplift somebody's day. You know, somebody might not be having a nice day. Just give them a touch on the shoulder and ask how they're doing.

"Just to encourage other women that are over 50 that life doesn't end there. They can come out and play sports just like us and exercise and stay healthy and meet friends. At the end of the day, we're all friends."

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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.