Prince William shows off his soccer skills

Oct 31, 2005, 14:31 GMT

Britain's Prince William showed off his soccer skills during a visit to Charlton Athletic Football Club on Friday (28.10.05).

The handsome royal joined in the players' training session in preparation for taking on the role of president of the Football Association in May. However, after taking part in the team's warm-up jog, William confessed he was not as fit as he could be.

He admitted: "I'm not as fit as I thought I was. I should be a lot fitter."

But although he may have been out of breath, the heir-to-the-throne insisted he was determined to have a "hands on" approach to football when he takes over from his uncle, Prince Andrew, as FA president.

He said: "I want to be a contributor, I don't want to be just a figurehead. I want to help the guys and just generally support football in every way I can."

William also pledged to get more children involved in the popular sport. He revealed: "I really want to try and get more kids involved in football. The power of football is huge and I think it needs to be harnessed and at the same time the sportsman side of football is a key issue to focus on."

However, the 23-year-old prince was later left red-faced when youngsters poked fun at his soccer skills.

One child called out "dodgy keeper" as William let in four out of seven goals scored by children from the football club's community programme.

Copyright 2005 BANG Media International