No racing gloves, but goalkeeper gloves: Wil Hartog is back under the bar after more than 50 years

A team photo in black and white. On which a young Wil Hartog, long before he gains world fame on the motorcycle, is squatting between his teammates. As goalkeeper. Striking: he wears no gloves and wears a shirt with short sleeves. Apparently even then afraid of nothing or no one.

Still, the former motorcycle champion – who won the TT in Assen in 1977, and then won the grand prix of Belgium, Germany and Finland – has some tension for this afternoon. “I haven’t been under the bar for over 50 years,” explains Hartog. “The sportsman in me is now a little overcome with fear of failure.”

It haunts the mind that Hartog sees a ball slip through his fingers in clumsy ways, or that one of the opponents shoots the ball through his legs into the goal. “I’m more afraid of my own stupid mistakes than of the opponent,” he laughs. “The club has managed to snare a historic opponent.”

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The field in Abbekerk is also something the former driver is thinking about. “Because we have a hard field at ALC, diving will be more difficult,” he says with a laugh. “As my age you still have to deal with brittle bones. I do walk every day and do sports to keep my body as flexible as possible.”

Whether Hartog tries to keep his goal clean in shorts and without gloves, just like 50 years ago, he will only know this afternoon. “Then I get the clothes from the club,” he says. “Fortunately my son has the same shoe size and I can put on his football boots.”

Lucky Ajax

Wil Hartog’s (short) performance between the posts tonight, stems from the 75th anniversary of the Abbekerk Lambertschaag Combinatie. At 6 p.m., Sjaak Swart’s Lucky Ajax will be the opponent of a team of ‘ALC Legends’. These are 26 players who mean or have meant a lot to the club. Chairman Sjaak Ros: “Wil and his brother Piet have been sponsors with the Hartog company for years.”

Another notable player on the side of the Abbekerkers is former international Glenn Helder. His girlfriend is from Abbekerk and he regularly gives youth training. Simon Tahamata, Olaf Lindenbergh, Dick Schoenaker, Ismaïl Aissati and Derk Boerrigter, among others, play at Lucky Ajax.

The match between the ALC Legends and Lucky Ajax starts at 6 p.m. ALC 1 and DWB 1 play a match for this.