Shouts of "Boss! Boss! Boss!" ring out across the field during an intense soccer match in a London park. Few names get used because most participants only connected moments before kickoff. An app is breathing new energy into local football by bringing them together.

Footy Addicts was created to fix a common headache for recreational players: last-minute dropouts that leave teams uneven and games spoiled. The platform unites strangers eager to play and ready to fill spots quickly after someone cancels.

Raul-Julian Grelet, 28, and Jacob Jae Ellis, 23, known as RJ and JJ, met on the pitch today. Grelet has arranged their game via Footy Addicts since the start of the year. He calls the service a "marvel to this community" and runs sessions so people can play and develop their skills.

"I do it because I know what it feels like to join a match while feeling shy and worried about performing poorly," he explains. "These sessions let anyone show up for a casual kickabout, meet new people and stay active."

That matches the vision of Footy Addicts CEO Konstantinos Gkortsilas. After arriving in the UK from Larissa, Greece, in 2006, he sought both football and a sense of community. Sunday League demanded too much time and money upfront, and he lacked enough contacts to set up his own matches.

He turned to meetup.com to locate fellow players. As numbers grew he launched Footy Addicts in 2013, an independent site that supplies individual players with a ready group. It has since expanded to more than 323,000 registered users across the UK.

Gkortsilas witnessed the impact directly. "After games I would chat with new people and feel a real sense of achievement," he says. "You are adding something positive to their lives and making them a bit happier. That felt like the greatest win."

Two years ago JJ Ellis returned to London after university, worked in hospitality and wanted exercise. "I do not mind the gym but it lacks the social element," he notes.

He discovered Footy Addicts and began playing regularly. At the sessions he never felt he had to struggle to belong, unlike many newcomers to jobs, cities or countries.

What started as a practical way to keep games going has grown into lasting friendships. Next year JJ will attend the wedding of someone he met through the app.

Isolation, particularly among young men, is an issue the platform helps ease. It also opens doors for women to play more often. Stephanie Benneli, 33, joins a regular game in Highbury. She played throughout her youth in Brazil yet found few chances in London as an adult.

After an eight-year break she found the service and rediscovered her love for the sport. Now she plays whenever she likes, which transforms her daily life.

"When I am struggling or facing tough times, football is the one thing that gets me outside," says Benelli. "Rain, drizzle or snow does not matter - I head out and enjoy it."

As Grelet's match ends at Barnard Park the next group waits on the touchline, already greeting one another, sharing jokes and cheering the players. The atmosphere stays cheerful while new connections form on the spot.