After Rory Fallon scored his goal, the goal, as he sauntered back to the All Whites side of the field for the kick-off, I noted that he lifted two hands and pointed up! Aha, I said, such an act is pointing in a given direction, which probably means one of two things.

After completing some detective work, it was confirmed, Rory Fallon is a striker on the GOD SQUAD, as he affirms that he has been born-again, by the grace of God… that is code for Christian. Woohoo, he is our brother from another mother [and Father, this side of the Trinity]!

Here is some choice reading from an article about the man, the context of the Fallon’s conversions, and Footballing info. for the glory of God.

PLYMOUTH Argyle striker Rory Fallon was in Tenerife with his girlfriend Carly when the couple, neither of them practising Christians, felt compelled to go to church.

They’d been moved by the disappearance of Maddie McCann in Portugal and felt the need for comfort and to offer prayers.

“It was strange,” Rory recalls. “We didn’t know where we were going, what (denomination) the church was, what the times of the services were, but we walked straight in and there was a service on and it happened to be in English.”

The New Zealander had travelled 11,000 miles from his home country to make his dream of becoming a professional footballer come true. But the greatest journey of his life was those few short steps into a church.

Those strides led the striker to a goal he’d had in his sights for years – to become a born-again Christian.

“The pastor was talking to the congregation about becoming a Christian and how many people would not make the commitment.

“He said, ‘what are you waiting for?’ It was like those words were aimed at me and Carly.”

A few months later, on January 20, 2008, the couple were baptised at Mutley Baptist Church and 10 months later they were married.

“It has not been easy,” Rory adds, reflecting on his path to and since his spiritual wakening.

But he allows himself frequent smiles as he talks about how deep and personal the commitment to Christianity is…

God gets what God wants!

…Tenerife followed and Rory committed himself as a Christian.

“I could feel God had been calling me, with all those things happening, one thing after the next,” he says, then stops. “You could call them coincidences but I don’t see it like that. I know. Too many things have happened for them just to be coincidences. I feel that God is always with me.”

Fired by such enthusiasm, Rory’s commitment to God extends beyond regular church attendance. One of the reasons he and Carly chose Mutley Baptist is the church’s strong community involvement focus.

Rory is patron of the Plymouth branch of Faith and Football, a Christian organisation founded by the Portsmouth defender Linvoy Primus. Branch director Jay Lawrence is a close friend and as well as running a children’s football league in Devonport, the organisation has moved beyond soccer to embrace rugby and basketball: Plymouth Albion’s Wihan Neethling and Plymouth Raiders’ James Noel are co-patrons. Argyle players Jamie Mackie and Luke Summerfield supported the launch of the city organisation at a fund-raising dinner at Home Park last November.

Rory coaches in Devonport and is involved in another initiative to boost children’s reading skills.

Turning out for Argyle on the rare occasions they play on a Sunday is not an issue, nor is two games in three days (home to Coventry today, away at Birmingham City on Monday) at such an important Christian festival, Easter. Rory believes that the work he does as a Christian and the example he gives outside church is more important than his attendance in it.

On the field, not everything has always gone as well for Rory at Argyle, though. He has rarely been a first-choice striker for the Pilgrims. Although he has scored some memorable goals, he has not been prolific.

He struggled to establish himself under Holloway’s regime and new manager Paul Sturrock, who took over in November 2007, ‘wanted me out’.

“That’s football,” says Rory. “I was struggling. Southend United came in with an offer (to buy me) and I prayed and prayed.

“Then I had a dream from God which told me to stay in Plymouth.” Rory pauses and smiles broadly before continuing: “People will think I’m nuts! But that is what happened.

“I told my agent the next morning I was not going anywhere.

“I was not happy at that time. But I worked hard feeling this was my last chance.”

The extra work paid off with more regular games this season. “It has certainly been better with minutes on the pitch. I’m just grateful to be involved.”

At 27, Rory is in his prime as a striker. Injuries permitting, he can look forward to many more years in the game before… well, what?

“I don’t know, that’s down to Jesus. I am clay in the potter’s hands; coaching children, perhaps.”

I am sure you picked up on the details about Fallon’s paperwork falling through, as he played junior football for England.  This article is dated from April 2009, so it affirms the recent providential happenings in the Fallon Football world, which also means Fallon has only recently joined the All Whites set-up!

The precedence that set this course for a change, centers around the midfielder from the Central Coast A-League team, 22 year old Michael McClinchey, who started in place of the injured Simon Elliot Saturday night.  McClinchey is also a NZ born individual, but played junior Football for Scotland.  With his career going through some difficulties, he headed down under, and has found his footballing mojo again.  As a result, the NZFA was able to get FIFA to allow McClinchey’s future to be shifted to NZ, which precipitated Fallon’s change in kind.

You can read the whole article from the, This is Plymouth website, for further info!

I also noted a piece on the TVNZ website where Rory has made the headlines in the UK, with some other interesting info. about the match

Here are some of the good bits!

“A deafening cheer went up as we went out, everybody was dressed in white, there were flags everywhere and I was just ‘wow’. I couldn’t believe this was New Zealand,” Fallon wrote.

“We shook hands with the Bahrain team and tried to look into their eyes and that was when I felt we had them. It is like a boxer when he goes into the ring and his opponent won’t look at him. They weren’t looking into my eyes and I was sure we would win.”

Fallon, described in the paper as a born-again Christian, said he shared a room with fellow All Whites hero Mark Paston on match eve but was up at 6am for a walk on the Wellington waterfront and a quick prayer…

…”I was praying again to send the goalkeeper the right way and Paston – my room mate – pulled out a great save to his right. It was unbelievable and I thought then we were through.”…

… “I will never forget all this, never forget that goal. As a striker you live on them. That was my most important goal.

“Now it’s back to Plymouth – we play Leicester away next Saturday. It’s a return to the day job, but with lots of memories to savour and more adventures to come.”

You can read the full account here!

It can be amazing what individuals can complete under the Sun, when other people are standing with them, encouraging them and exhorting them to do great things!

There is a body of Christ analogy here, which you should not be missing!

Man of Spin is stoked to read this, and looks forward to more goals in the back of the oppositions net, for the glory of God, from the big Kiwi Striker!

For the Fame of His Name

Man of Spin

Used with Permission from another Source