It’s a funny old game
I’m talking about football, and before that makes you turn away in disgust, I’m also talking about health, and community, and the act of giving.
Because, this week, I was lucky enough to attend The Leeds Creator Cup.
Dirty Words
For those of you that don’t know, Leeds United is my team.
I know, I know, ‘dirty Leeds’ are not everyone’s cup of tea, but I’m a Leeds boy, and shortly after being entranced by the appearance of the name of my home town on Grandstand’s ‘classified results’ we won the old second division and then the old first division.
I didn’t stand a chance
Fast forward some thirty five years (why yes, I am that old. Thank you for asking) and despite the ups and downs (and downs, and down) I’m still hooked. I’m a Leeds addict to the point of watching a number of YouTube channels dedicated to my favourite sport and my favourite team. I tune in for reviews of the last round of games, the latest news about players, their injuries, and their form. I tune in for the gossip around new signings and the buzz as one or more of those rumours proves to be true.
Fast forward some thirty five years (why yes, I am that old. Thank you for asking) and despite the ups and downs (and downs, and down) I’m still hooked. I’m a Leeds addict to the point of watching a number of YouTube channels dedicated to my favourite sport and my favourite team. I tune in for reviews of the last round of games, the latest news about players, their injuries, and their form. I tune in for the gossip around new signings and the buzz as one or more of those rumours proves to be true.
Community Chest
Mainly I tune in to connect to that sense of community. That sense of everyone being equally invested in something that I personally hold great stock in. It’s a community that last Sunday came together in the best of ways.
The venue was The John Charles Centre For Sport in Leeds. The even was a traditional 90 minute long game of Association Football played between a number of content creators and their friends and allies. The cause was Prostate Cancer. Something that affects one in eight men.
It was seven pounds to attend, money that went straight to Prostate Cancer UK and with over five hundred people in attendance and more fund raising incorporated in the event it meant that over five thousand pounds was raised during the day. A worthwhile result for a worthwhile cause, I'm sure you’ll agree.
Raining Goals
As for the day itself, well, I think I can say a good time was had by most, if not all. Yes the rains came down, but at least some of the seating was under cover, meaning the only people who got ‘properly’ wet were those content creators (I don’t know whether that’s a title worthy of capitalisation or not.
Their nane won’t mean anything to the vast majority reading this, but I can assure you that a good ninety percent of the great and the good of the Leeds YouTubeshphere were in attendance—people who I watch on a daily basis as they pontificate about the club I love and Joe Blackburn, the man who put it all together did an unbelievable job
What was noticeable was how together everyone was . I mean, there’s a world where these people would and possibly should be fratching over market share, viewing numbers, and schedules. All I saw were twenty-odd blokes of varying ages and levels of fitness and skill running through the mud and occasionally making contact with either the ball or someone’s shins.
The venue was The John Charles Centre For Sport in Leeds. The even was a traditional 90 minute long game of Association Football played between a number of content creators and their friends and allies. The cause was Prostate Cancer. Something that affects one in eight men.
It was seven pounds to attend, money that went straight to Prostate Cancer UK and with over five hundred people in attendance and more fund raising incorporated in the event it meant that over five thousand pounds was raised during the day. A worthwhile result for a worthwhile cause, I'm sure you’ll agree.
Raining Goals
As for the day itself, well, I think I can say a good time was had by most, if not all. Yes the rains came down, but at least some of the seating was under cover, meaning the only people who got ‘properly’ wet were those content creators (I don’t know whether that’s a title worthy of capitalisation or not.
Their nane won’t mean anything to the vast majority reading this, but I can assure you that a good ninety percent of the great and the good of the Leeds YouTubeshphere were in attendance—people who I watch on a daily basis as they pontificate about the club I love and Joe Blackburn, the man who put it all together did an unbelievable job
What was noticeable was how together everyone was . I mean, there’s a world where these people would and possibly should be fratching over market share, viewing numbers, and schedules. All I saw were twenty-odd blokes of varying ages and levels of fitness and skill running through the mud and occasionally making contact with either the ball or someone’s shins.
I think at one point, a football match may have broken out, but that is entirely incidental. I do know the entertainment factor was good though, because Tina my always-awesome wife not only sat through the whole thing but spontaneously confirmed her desire to attend next year’s event (should next year have one) To put this in context, this is a lady who has been known to nap her way through half a season’s worth of footy, internationals included.
Up For The Cup
And of course, I’d agree (about the match, not the naps). Accessibility wasn’t an issue. Yes, I would have liked to get pitch side to meet and greet some of the people whose faces I only know from the other side of a computer screen, but no, not enough to risk the flight of stairs it would have taken to do so. I guess I’ll just take solace in the handshakes of the couple of people who made their way up said stairs.
Not that it matters. The important fact is the money raised and the potential for the community who came together to raise it to do more in the future, however that may look.
I know I’ll be game.
Until next time.
#
Hey, there! If you enjoyed reading any of the above, why not take a look at some of my published work? Below you’ll find links to a number of short stories I’m lucky enough to have included in anthologies. I’d love to know what you think.
New Tales Of Old
Death Ship
Pestilence: Drabbles 1
Reaperman: Drabbles 3
The Musketeers Vs Cthulhu
Eldritch Investigations
No comments:
Post a Comment