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EXCLUSIVE: ‘I love football but being an ice hockey goalie is more fun!’: Chelsea legend Petr Cech opens up on living his childhood dream at 40 and what his next steps are after leaving his Stamford Bridge board role last summer

‘I found Jesus! He was hiding behind the sofa!’ reads one chap’s T-shirt at the Riverside Ice and Leisure Centre in Chelmsford, Essex.

Sportsmail found Petr Cech, too. He was hiding behind great big body armour and a Chelmsford Chieftains shirt, the No 39 on his back.

We’re used to seeing Cech in a helmet but not like this. The 40-year-old Czech is here fulfilling a childhood dream; finally he’s got ice beneath his feet and a hockey stick in hand after signing a one-year deal with the Chieftains in NIHL South Division One.

The home team triumph 8-3 over Oxford City Stars in front of 1,200 fans in this Sunday night showdown and afterwards, Sportsmail waits by the Chieftains changing room.