This Monday, Abby joins a paddleboarding group on the river Medway. Plus: we hear from a Margate supermum off the back of an international triathlon.
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00:00 Good evening and welcome along to Invictus Sports, the only show on your TV dedicated
00:20 to wrapping up all of Kent's sporting action. I'm Abbey Hook and here's what to expect on
00:25 Monday 18th September. Nothing lost all to gain. Margate and Folkestone
00:31 draw means another chance at success. Nine years in the making. Margate's woman reveals
00:37 her journey from back garden to Belgium triathlon. And a passion for paddling, one of the fastest
00:45 growing sports in the UK, takes to the River Medway.
00:50 Round up first, a round up of the headlines. Another victory for the Gilles on Saturday.
00:55 Happy Neil Harris has left them top of League 2 with goals 2-1 win coming in the opening
01:01 25 minutes. More on the weekend's fixtures later in the show.
01:06 And a few famous faces for more match action in Medway this weekend. Actors Danny Dyer,
01:13 Jake Wood, Dean Gaffney and singer James Arthur. Reality star Dan Osborne all joined forces
01:18 for a celebrity football match at Chatham Town FC. With such a large turnout, the start
01:24 was delayed till 6.30pm. At full time, the blue team took the win 7-6. Organised by the
01:30 Celebrity Soccer, the match raised money for the TBCD, a Life for Leo Foundation. The initiative
01:37 was first launched as a fundraising page by Leo's mum, Lucinda Andrews from Lordswood.
01:42 Leo was born with an ultra-rare, life-limiting genetic condition. But his family have refused
01:47 to give up hope and are working with a biotech company in California which deals in innovative
01:53 drug research. Hoping that money raised will help get him there.
01:58 In cricket, Zach Crawley is being back to have a successful one-day series as England's
02:02 captain by Kent's incoming director of cricket, Simon Cook. Opener Crawley will join a select
02:08 group of Kent players to captain his country, after being named to lead England's squad
02:13 for the three-game series against Ireland. It comes as the more experienced players in
02:17 the England squad prepare for the World Cup in India. Cook says that it is a fantastic
02:22 opportunity for Crawley and that he's confident he'll make the most of it.
02:28 Next in Tunbridge, Juddians bounce back from last week's Derby defeat with a 36-25 win
02:34 over Guernsey in National League Two East. Howard Packman opened the Tunbridge account
02:39 after some good approach work by the forwards with Sam Evans converting. The game also saw
02:45 Jack Whitmarsh claim his first Tunbridge try after more than 100 appearances for the club.
02:51 The win takes the Judds up to sixth in the table with two wins from three. And it comes
02:56 as England are a big step closer to the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals. The World Cup action
03:01 returns on Wednesday when Italy face Uruguay, South Africa beat Ireland on Saturday night,
03:06 and then Wales take on Australia a day later.
03:10 Now let's take a look back at this weekend's football results.
03:14 This week's action kicks off at Hartsdown Park where Kensides, Marget and Folkestone
03:18 faced off in what proved to be an FA Cup thriller. Folkestone started off brightly and could
03:24 have led in the first minute through Scott Hurd who dragged his shot wide. Invicta however
03:30 kept up the tempo and were rewarded a minute later after Hurd's cross was headed home by
03:35 Ibrahim Olutade to give them the lead.
03:40 Marget almost struck back through a header of their own as Tyron Sterling saw his effort
03:45 skim the bar. The gate continued to look dangerous down the right flank but missed a finishing
03:50 touch sending them into the half a goal behind. Going into the second half and Marget had
03:55 strong appeals for a penalty waved away after skipper Sam Blackman went down under a challenge
04:00 from Kane Penn. The gate remained persistent however but still lacked that finishing touch.
04:07 Folkestone were then reduced to 10 men in the 56th minute after left back Kanye picked
04:10 up his second yellow. The gate became even more aggressive against the 10 man Invicta
04:16 and eventually found an equaliser in the 74th minute. Steve Colley had his first effort
04:21 saved but was quickest to react in the box to slough the ball home.
04:29 The 10 man Invicta refused to go away and took the lead against the odds. Substitute
04:34 Ira Jackson controlled the ball well and unleashed a cracking strike into the top right to put
04:39 Invicta ahead just 4 minutes before regulation. But the game had another twist in store as
04:44 Marget struck back in the 4th minute of added time through Antonis Vassilio to force a replay
04:50 between the two sides. The game will take place tomorrow as gate manager Rhys Prestid
04:54 said his side should have beaten 10 men Folkestone.
05:14 Moving on to League 2 where Gillingham dispatched off 10 men Morecambe to stay top of the table.
05:19 Goals from George Lapsy and Connor Mahoney were enough to give the Gilles the three points
05:23 as manager Neil Harris said they should have scored more.
05:26 Now on to the National League and Epsfleet United fell to their second defeat in a row
05:30 against league leaders Chesterfield. The loss sees the fleet drop to 10th in the National
05:35 League and manager Dennis Kruijp was left frustrated as he thought there was a clear
05:39 foul in the build up to the winner.
05:51 And while there was no National League South action this weekend, Kent's clubs continued
05:55 their FA Cup journeys. Maidstone United eased their way into the next round with a comfortable
06:00 win while Dartford and Tunbridge saw their cup runs come to an end.
06:05 And finally coming to the Isthmian Premier Division where Chatham Town played out a scoreless
06:09 draw away to Potters Bar Town.
06:12 And that's your round up of this weekend's football action.
06:16 Next this evening, for nine years Margate locals Saoirse Page was training for an international
06:21 triathlon which she's now completed. The aqua bike race in Belgium sees competitors
06:26 face off in miles of swimming, then cycling, then running. She's taken on some tough races
06:31 with one combining a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike ride and a half marathon. Well Finn McDermott
06:38 has talked with her about her journey to the finish line.
06:56 in the next. So, I've got a few things to say about my journey. I've got to say that,
07:23 getting across the finish line is where the initial buzz started. And then looking at
07:30 friends on Facebook, one of my old school friends did a mini triathlon which yet again
07:37 was run by Race for Life. So I signed up because I used to love swimming when I was younger,
07:44 not so much cycling. So I signed up to do it, raised some money and it actually got
07:49 cancelled. I don't think there was enough people doing it. So I was like, I need to
07:53 keep doing something because I've taken money and that. So I found a local one in Essex
07:58 which was pool based, very small. I went there and absolutely loved it and that's where it
08:05 started. So can you talk to me a bit about what the
08:09 triathlon and the aqua bike, what it demands from you. So I know it's swimming, it's cycling
08:13 and it's running. I don't know the order. Right, so yeah, it is swim, bike, run.
08:19 Okay. That is the set order. It can be from a super
08:24 sprint which would be a really small distance to a full Ironman which would be a massive
08:33 distance finishing with a marathon at the end. I've got as far as a half, they call
08:39 it a half Ironman and that's a 1.2 mile swim, then a 56 mile bike ride followed by a half
08:46 marathon. Wow. And to add into the mix, a lot of them do have an eight hour or eight
08:51 and a half hour cut off time. So if you don't make those disciplines, you're out.
08:57 I've heard you're a big advocate for getting more women into triathlons, these kind of
09:03 competitive events. What would you say to anyone thinking about yourself nine years
09:08 ago, that mindset of getting in. What would you say to someone who wants to get into that
09:12 but is sort of doubting themselves? Even now, the percentage, when you look at
09:15 the percentage of women to men competing in triathlon and quite a lot of sports, it's
09:21 still very, very low. And I feel as a woman starting, I started
09:25 at the age of 40, coming into sport, support for women was low. It's obviously getting
09:33 bigger now. We've had like the women's great football team, the Lionesses, promoting women
09:37 in sport. But for triathlon, it's still quite low percentage. And I'm not really sure what
09:44 the issue is getting women to the start line. Is it family commitments, not self-belief,
09:50 feel they're too old. I just really want people to go out there and give it a go.
09:55 How did it feel being in Belgium, crossing that finish line?
10:00 It was, I'm going to say it's a lot and everyone will laugh at me. It was a big build up. Obviously,
10:06 I understand it's took me nine years to get there. When I first started, I didn't realise
10:11 there was such a thing as you could race in your age group for Great Britain. And when
10:15 I found out, I was like, do you know what, I want to give it a go. I think I had a bit
10:19 of imposter syndrome of like, wow, I'm with these top athletes.
10:23 I'm sure I would. Yeah, there was professionals there. And on
10:28 Sunday, we normally triathletes race quite early. We can be on the start line at six
10:32 in the morning. So we're getting up at four, getting prepped. And the race was not till
10:36 one o'clock in the afternoon. So I think I struggled a bit with the build up. So I found
10:41 the whole day quite emotional, very loud with music and the vibe and the buzz. Yeah, it
10:47 was quite a lot. But once I got in the swim, I was fine. I knew I could do the distances
10:54 and I just focused on what I did and having my family cheering me because the bike was
10:58 on two loops. So it was great to be able to come around and find your family. But yeah,
11:03 crossing the finish line was quite an emotional day, actually. It was a big build up of what
11:08 I'd been training for. I think I'm still on a bit of a high actually, two weeks later.
11:13 I think that's probably understandable, I would think. And I'm just not too sure. Was
11:19 it your personal best? It was my personal best in my swim and my
11:23 bike. The women were fast out there. I'm going to go back out next year because now I know
11:30 what to do. I did come 15th and I know I could probably do better, but the women were awesome
11:37 and they were on fire. But it pushed me to do my best. And the fact that I came out and
11:42 gave it all I could and got PBs for myself is I think it's a big achievement.
11:49 Incredibly inspirational. Congratulations to Saoirse. Now we've reached halftime, which
11:54 means time for a break.
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15:09 Hello and welcome back to Invicta Sport live on KMTV. Now sometimes sport isn't about the
15:17 speed, but more about the need. And paddle boarding on Kent Rivers is exactly what this
15:22 group of enthusiasts thrive off. But their playing ground is under threat from both sewage
15:27 discharge and plastic pollution. One paddle boarding coach from Tunbridge Wells says it
15:32 has a huge and devastating impact on her business. But can she push through these murky waters
15:37 and keep her business afloat? I joined a paddle on the river Medway to find out.
15:43 A passion for paddling, protecting wildlife, and reducing plastic. Here's a sport that
15:50 encompasses all three. Paddle boarding. Sup with Anna was born out of a love for the water
15:58 during a very isolated time in the pandemic. And the water sport has since soared in popularity.
16:04 It's the fastest growing sport in UK at the moment. Definitely more so with female
16:11 attendance. So from my stats, about 88% are women. But also we have some men just a bit
16:18 more on the competitive side. So we have racing as well. We do-- loads of our members do race.
16:25 Yes, huge, huge growth in the last four years. And Anna, a huge issue that we've seen hit all
16:32 the headlines recently as well is sewage and the sewage discharge pollution in our rivers,
16:37 like the river Medway that we're on right now. How worried are you about river pollution and
16:42 what that could mean for your business? Super worried. There is more and more we hear about,
16:47 obviously because the paddle boarding community is growing. So there's a big campaign out now
16:53 by Lizzie Carr, who is the founder of Planet Patrol. We're actually testing the waters.
16:56 And it is huge. I mean, every year I probably have a one week off because of the algae and
17:03 because of, obviously, the farmers around us throwing all the chemicals in. You have to stop.
17:10 So for me, a week in the height of the summer, it's huge. And also, obviously, for the benefit
17:15 of all these people, their mental health, they want to be out on the water. It's not good.
17:20 Definitely not good. Yeah. And wildlife, you know, not the last thing. Wildlife, you see dead fish,
17:26 you see dead sheep, you see-- it's not good. But it's not just sewage polluting the river.
17:34 Found a glass bottle, a shoe. Someone was obviously drinking shots because there's
17:40 loads of shot glasses in there. There's a football, if I didn't mention that. Plastic bottles,
17:46 loads of paper. How long did it take you to find everything you've got today?
17:50 Probably about 10 minutes in total. It was a good but very sad for you.
17:56 Clearing up the river is just one way of giving back to the water they paddle on every day.
18:03 And not only does the sport boost their bodies,
18:06 but these enthusiasts say it works magic for their minds.
18:09 It makes your mind just go quiet. Nothing stresses you out. Once you come out of your
18:16 paddleboarding, it's like you are completely refreshed.
18:18 Really good in terms of thinking about in your head the balance, but also in your body. So
18:26 good for muscles all round. It's fantastic. It really does help.
18:31 Actually, if I've not been out for a few days because of work or family,
18:36 I start to feel that I need to get out.
18:39 It's not just stand up paddleboarding, sit down or kneeling down. You can also do yoga
18:44 on these boards and a litter pick as you go down the river. But also,
18:48 it's a pretty interesting way to walk your dog. Come on then.
18:52 Abbey Hook and Lola for KMTV.
18:59 And earlier, I caught up with Anna to find out even more about her paddleboarding events.
19:04 Anna, thank you so much for joining me. I know you've had a busy week of paddleboarding and
19:09 a busy weekend of windsurfing as well, you said. So clearly the water sports,
19:14 it's in your blood there. So tell me, where did it all begin? Why paddleboarding?
19:18 Hi, Abbey. Thank you so much for having me. Yes, so paddleboarding started for me about
19:25 seven years ago with a lesson in Cornwall. I got kind of hooked up there and then I moved
19:32 everything down to Bexhill where I have a flat. So I did a lot of sea paddling for about seven
19:37 years or so. And then when COVID struck, I came back to Tambridge Wares where I live
19:44 currently and got my first inflatable and using it on the river Medway at Tambridge.
19:49 And it being inflatable actually means that it's quite accessible because you can chuck it in your
19:55 car, it's deflated, and then you can actually pump it up, plug it into your car and pump it up. So
19:59 it means that you can sort of take it around with you. Yes, that's very true. Yeah, I think this is
20:05 why sapping paddleboarding, so standard paddleboarding, it's so popular these days.
20:10 Fastest growing sport in UK at the moment, it's because it's so accessible. It's very popular
20:16 with the ladies, especially ages 40 plus, again, just because obviously accessibility and then the
20:23 mothers trying to find a new hobby for themselves, it's easy to just buy it and pump it up and go.
20:30 And all the ladies I met on Friday, they said that it was so good for their mental health.
20:36 That was the one thing we spoke about quite, they spoke of quite highly, that it's really,
20:40 really helped. So do you think that's another reason why it is such a fast growing sport?
20:47 Absolutely, yes. Again, touching on the people that have joined this kind of sport,
20:53 coming to age, say, I don't know, more so 40 plus, I find, you don't need to do so much
21:02 hard exercise as gym would be or, you know, running and all that. This is gentler. And
21:08 obviously for the mind, it's absolutely incredible. Just being outdoors, obviously seeing the change
21:15 in the seasons, all the wildlife around us. We do sometimes foraging on the river, which is
21:20 fantastic learning about what's surrounding us, just the simple life.
21:24 And when people are thinking about getting into sport, they think about their experience and
21:29 if they'll be able to do it themselves. And I understand there are lots of different levels
21:34 to paddleboarding, lots of different ways that you can do it to match your ability.
21:37 Do you have different like levels as you go up? Do you train people? How does it work?
21:43 Yes. So ideally people will come for a first lesson. And after that, they would have the
21:50 options to join different clubs. So we go out on River Medway three times a week.
21:54 And then after that, they could come and join the longer trips of the weekend, which is a day out
22:00 itself. And then after that, there'll be weekend trips and so on moving on. As we do holidays
22:08 abroad, sometimes having a week that you need to train for means that we need a program about
22:12 a year before we get them to the certain standard. So join one lesson and then come and do smaller
22:19 trips and bigger trips and then eventually get into the longer trips. So that is the simple
22:25 kind of simple way in. As you grow with the sport, I have got about four ladies now that have been
22:30 with me three years. They moved on to racing. So of course, that's a different kind of structure
22:36 to the actual just paddling for fun bit. You can do that. You can get to that level.
22:41 Incredible. And something else that attracted me when you said it was that you get these
22:46 huge trips abroad. Now, tell us some of the places you've been and some of the places you're going
22:51 as well. Yes. So we've managed to get out to Sardinia, Croatia, Slovenia, Norway, which was
23:00 quite a tough one. And then we're going back to Slovenia next week. And then for next year,
23:06 we've got Sri Lanka, Florida, Canada, and then back to Europe for a few more countries as well.
23:13 Amazing. So it's such an incredible trip comes at a cost, though, too. So what's the sort of
23:19 price ranges? What's the accessibility like right down from going out on the River Medway,
23:24 as I did right up to these trips abroad? So the lesson itself is a seat around 40 to 60 pounds.
23:33 It depends on the level. And then we're moving on to the weekly trips, which is five pounds to join.
23:39 So there's no membership fee. You just come as you go when you when you can. And then moving on
23:45 to the longer trips. So expedition on River Medway for two days with camping halfway will be around
23:51 100 pounds. Retreat days at the lake would be around 50 pounds. And then moving on to the
23:56 trips abroad, of course, more expensive. We're looking at budget one Croatia, which is around
24:02 600 pounds and all the way to the most expensive, which is Sri Lanka, around two and a half grand.
24:08 And very quickly, Anna, what's next? What more do you want to do? It seems like you are conquering
24:13 all the other countries. But what's next? Well, my my main objective is to get as many people
24:20 out paddling. So at the moment, I'm working on having a few more leaders and a few more instructors
24:27 so they can actually go out and take as many people out as possible. And then that will free
24:31 me up for organizing more amazing events and also obviously trips abroad, which take a bit more time
24:37 and a bit more organization. But moving forward, just get people out on the water is just absolutely
24:44 incredible for you, for your mind and for you. Obviously, it's a lot more to do with the core.
24:48 So for us and all the ladies to work on that core and stability balance, it's it's it's very
24:54 important. And it seems like something that means a lot to you as well, born out of a hobby, out of
24:59 a passion for paddling. And now you've managed to make a whole business and lifestyle out of it.
25:04 Oh, absolutely. I never thought about it. I've been an accountant for 20 years.
25:10 And yeah, I've I've started this with passion and obviously everyone around me supporting me.
25:16 Thank you so much, everyone. It just made this work into a small business that it's
25:22 actually now growing, growing a bit.
25:25 Incredible. And just before we go, if it's a it's a tricky question, probably the hardest
25:30 question, but if you had to sum it up in a word, in a few words, how would you?
25:35 Oh, God, it's tricky. One word. Just passion, passion. That's that's what makes something work.
25:46 And obviously, a lot of support from from my clients and my family. I mustn't forget. I mean,
25:52 my my husband and my children were absolutely rocks for me.
25:55 Amazing. Thank you, Anna, so much for your time today. Where was it again you're off to next week?
25:59 Next week, we're going to Slovenia and we're flying to Venice
26:04 so we could have spent a couple of days in Venice and paddling in Venice as well,
26:08 which is incredible. Then we are off to Bovec, which is our location is about two hours away
26:13 from Venice. Incredible stuff there from Anna. And so that, you know, she's not paddle boarding
26:19 from Venice all the way to Slovenia. They will be getting a transport in between those. But
26:24 absolute incredible feet from them and all those places they can go abroad as well and paddle
26:30 board. I was at the River Medway, of course, but it was still just as fun. Glad I didn't fall in.
26:35 Now that is full time on today's episode of Invictus Sports. If you want more from
26:39 came to me, watch all our other special programs. They can be found on our website came to me.co.uk
26:45 Bartholomew will be back on Friday with another episode of Invictus Sport. Bye bye.
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