From my Birmingham Mail column Weds 29th Aug 2018

 

I and others have often been quite scathing about modern day footballers and how they can accept cheating as part of the game with apparently no conscience and are out of touch with their fans and the local community. Well two things have impressed me this week and I am sure there are many other similar stories from all our local clubs.

Firstly was Blues boss Garry Monk highlighting that his players have asked the club to organise more community visits to hospitals etc. for them to do. This is so refreshing when I have seen in the past some players reluctantly doing these sort of community based things and making it clear that they would rather be at home. Some of the things Garry and the players have done restores your faith in the game. Having said that they have to be selective because they cannot possibly make an appearance at every request.

Secondly I continue to be impressed with the time, money and effort former Baggies and Blues striker Geoff Horsfield puts into helping the homeless people in Birmingham and the West Midlands through his Geoff Horsfield Foundation. Geoff started this because he wanted to put something back into the area that had made him so welcome.

I have been staggered at the amount of energy Geoff puts into helping the vulnerable and homeless from offering them somewhere safe for them to stay - to helping feed them-to providing clothes and other essentials for them that the rest of us take for granted.

If you have anything including, clothes, bedding, toiletries that could help go to his website and find out how to get them to him. And he and his team of helpers organise some fantastic fund-raisers again his website or his social media pages will have all the information you need. The latest event is on October the 5th in West Bromwich and is a Q and A with former Baggies Paul Robinson, Andy Johnson, Jonathan Greening and Geoff and is called “The Great Escape” reunion. The stories will be amazing and hilarious and not to be missed and of course all proceeds go to the Geoff Horsfield Foundation. See you there.