Lockdown footballers united in support of better mental health
A dad-of-three who set up a ‘weekly mental health football match’ during the 2020 lockdown said the team had gone from strength-tostrength and was continuing to flourish since the end of Covid restrictions.
Steve Cassidy, from Grangetown, set up a fivea-side football match over Twitter to help with the mental health of him and his teenage son, Connor, during the second lockdown in 2020.
In late 2021, the team received their very first sponsor allowing the team to have an official top for the 10 men meeting up weekly at the
Beacon of Light.
Now, two years later, the group have developed and progressed and are now an official team named ‘United Minds’ .
Steve said they are going on to create further mental health support for the people of Sunderland by raising money for mental health charity, Sunderland Mind.
“We've gone from 10 lads with no name or plans to a team called United Minds with roughly double the number still playing weekly at the Rooftop [at the] Beacon of Light.
“We have lads of all ages, from 14 all the way up to lads in their 40s.
"Just that weekly game really helps with our mental health, we've met some great lads and are like a little
family.”
This team that Steve has developed over the last few
years have now got their own official full kit with the help of club sponsor, Fritidsklader
Clothing.
Now the team are going on to provide further mental health support for the people of Sunderland by playing charity games in aid of Sunderland Mind.
Steve Cassidy said: “We decided to play a few charity football games which in total we raised just over three thousand [pounds] for the charity Sunderland mind.”
Sunderland Mind is a local charity based in Church Street, Sunderland which is an independent charity that provides mental health support to the people of Sunderland.
Steve added: “We already have had a few friendly games. We also have a charity game against a Danish set of football supporters in April and [then] a charity night in June. So at the minute it's full steam ahead for us as a club.”