Kian Gadsby
Intramural Sports are a low skill, low-stress sporting environment that allows you the opportunity to gain a few hours of exercise, meet new people and become closer friends with your team.
Everyone has the opportunity to find their place to play, making them particularly popular amongst students at the University of Nottingham, with over 4,000 taking part each year.
However, as with any student activity, participating in IMS comes with a significant financial and opportunity cost. With the pressure on students to study, work, interview for internships or graduate jobs, socialise and enjoy being young, do the benefits of joining an IMS team outweigh the downsides?
There is empirical evidence to suggest that the answer to this question is a resounding yes. A 2021 research paper by Canadian professors Kevin E. S. Wilson and Patti Millar built on previous works to show that overall, there is a “unique association between fostering physical health and wellness outcomes among participants and student retention.”
But we wanted to discover the reality at UoN and truly see for ourselves if IMS is actually worthwhile.
To find out more, we went along to visit Puyol Pants Down FC. The seven-a-side team play every Sunday and were formed by a group of friends who use the matches as an opportunity to stay in touch after living in halls together for their first year.
This team may seem insignificant, but it means a lot to its players. The football dominates conversation, with group chats and even an Instagram account being created solely for the purpose of this side. Friends with no interest in the sporting side regularly come down to support, creating a community atmosphere around the club and making their matches a social event.
The unique opportunity to combine socialising and exercising is one of the reasons why captain Jack Dean plays. He told me, “I enjoy it more than most activities as football is one of my favourite sports to play and it’s still a good way of socialising.”
Striker Andy Carello was more cavalier, answering the question of ‘how much do you enjoy IMS?’ on behalf of Dean with, “I would trade my captain to play IMS.” The comment earned him a glare and a run to fetch a loose ball, but all was quickly forgotten as the team went back to laughing and smiling.
Puyol Pants Down do not win many games, but that is part of the charm. They are languishing at the bottom of the third tier, only surviving because of forfeits from other teams.
“The exercise is great and no one takes it too seriously,” claims goalkeeper Ollie Stevenson. When reminded by one of the substitutes that he should be focusing on the match in front of him, he attempted to prove his point, adding, “Even Lemming gets a game.”
Such banter defines the club and is part of what makes IMS so enjoyable.
Remarkably, due to a lack of numbers, I even found myself on the pitch; helping Puyol Pants Down to defy the odds and grind out a gritty 1-0 victory over Chemsoc. While it would be best to avoid discussing my individual performance, I quickly got involved and found myself agreeing with their assessment that IMS is fun.
Of course, there is a financial cost associated to participation. Although the burden is noticeable, it is considerably less than other entertainment activities.
Entry fees range from £30 to £40 per player for a season – a significantly lower amount than the equivalent BUCS costs which can surge up above £400. These fees are kept down as students are not required to have a UoN Sport and Fitness Membership for most leagues, saving athletes a further £185.
With these figures being dwarfed by the modern price of sporting tickets or nights out, IMS is left as an affordable social option.
Again, this is an assessment that Dean agrees with. The skipper was quick to point out that the opportunity to play represented good value for money, saying, “I don’t think it’s too expensive. The facilities provided to play football on are good quality and is worth the payment.”
When the final whistle blew, Puyol Pants Down trudged away from the pitch and into the pub to celebrate a first victory.
Who can blame them? With student life being packed with pressure, IMS offers an opportunity to restore enjoyment into lives. Listening to those celebrations, after winning a single match, made it clear that these students feel that IMS is worthwhile at the University of Nottingham.
Kian Gadsby
Featured image courtesy of Puyol Pants Down FC. No changes were made to this image.
