I will make mistakes - Bolt

His nonchalant mannerisms before his races has been copied by track and field athletes all over the globe, but Usain Bolt believes he will look the complete opposite when he graces the field in his debut football match for the Central Coast Mariners in an Australian A-League preseason exhibition game against an amateur team on Friday.

"There definitely will be nerves, it's not like it's a charity game anymore," Bolt said. "I expect to make mistakes but I also expect to go out there, make myself proud and to push myself.

"I know I'm not going to have a perfect game."

The Trelawny native has vowed to silence his critics who have said that his desire to become a professional football player is pure gimmick.

But Mariners' coach Mike Mulvey seems to believe otherwise.

FOOTBALL FITNESS

"The thing he's struggling with more than anything else right now is getting used to the football fitness," Mulvey said. "He is doing OK."

"He's got rudimentary skills, there's no problem about that," Mulvey said. "It's about being able to do it at the speed that we do it."

Bolt said he's finding the nature of football training different and demanding but felt he had made some improvement in his first week.

"For me, it's the stop and go, the tick-tacks, because I'm not used to picking up speed, going back down, up and down, up and down, back and forth, that's the most challenging," he said. "The season doesn't start until the end of October, so I have time."

The 32-year-old, who holds the world records for the 100 and 200-metres and was the undisputed track and field star of three Olympics, thinks he isn't far from full fitness.

"It's just time," he said. "I don't know how my body is going to feel. I know when I'm on the field, I'm always going to push myself."

According to Mulvey, Bolt is expected to play 14-20 minutes in Friday's exhibition match.