The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Walk on and help tackle stigma of mental illness
For some men , opening up about their emotions can feel like a step too far.
Dundee fan Richie PeterTennant and his Walk and Blether group hope to change that as they put their best feet forward for mental health.
A week on Saturday, Richie and a small group of friends will walk from Raith Rovers’ Stark’s Park to Dens Park, the home of the Dark Blues, ahead of the sides’ Championship meeting.
The 33-mile trek from Kirkcaldy to the City of Discover y is in aid of Dundee FC in the C o m m u n i ty Tr u s t and Samaritans, as they hope to raise cash and awareness for suicide prevention.
Richie will be joined by fellow Dees Valerie Lindsay and C hez L esle y, who completed a walk of their own in August from the Forth Road Bridge to the Tay Road Bridge, raising more than £500 for Andy’s Man Club.
It will be no mean feat but Richie insists every step will be worth it if they can save just one life.
“We’re setting off in the very early hours of the morning,” the 50-year-old said.
“We’re getting a lift there but, obviously, have to adhere to social distancing which makes things tougher.
“There won’t be many of us but the female Dundee fans who did 50-odd miles last month from the Forth Road Bridge to the Tay Road Bridge for men’s mental health will be there, too.
“It’s a ver y informal group we’ve set up. Anyone can come along but with the guidelines at the moment, it’s very strict.
“In Scotland, there’s about two suicides a day and, with Covid-19, it doesn’t help matters.
“If we can help just one person from taking their own life then it’s been worthwhile. My motto has always been to help people to help themselves.”
Although Richie is grateful for the support of the club, he feels more needs to be done in Scottish football and society to tackle issues such as anxiety and depression.
He added: “Wi t h i n football and this country we need more education on mental health, definitely.
“For years people had been told to ‘man up’ or ‘grow a pair’, but we hope that’s changing.
“You see footballers now coming to the fore to say they’ve had issues and I think we need more honest guys to come forward and say, ‘I’ve been struggling, too’.
“Guys like Leigh Griffiths and Garry O’Connor are good but there is more out there. It can be powerful to
show the fans it’s normal to talk about your feelings and problems.”
Richie, a Crystal Palace fan origina l ly from Croydon, believes groups – like the one he set up with Balgay Hill Bar owner Paul Murphy – can be a powerful tool.
He continued: “That’s what football is all about – talking to people, even rival fans, and having the banter. It can bring people together.
“On the walks we’ ve done, they’ve not been very far, from Dens to the Rosie (as the Balgay Hill Bar is known) and back, there’s been people laughing but also people talking about their mental health.
“It’s been good to see the spectrum of people and
different issues. People will have been struggling because of lockdown and not being able to go to places they want to.
“It’s for men’s mental health but we’re open to women, children, you name it – come along, you’ll be made more than welcome.
“I got the idea from social media. One or two people I know from down south had done quite a few in London, like Palace to Fulham, Arsenal to Palace, that sort of thing.
“I joined a Pa l a c e suppor ters Dundee Facebook page and was invited to go to the pub and met Paul through there – I’m not going to turn down an invite to the pub!
“August last year we started talking about it and
he said, ‘ Look, I’ve had issues with mental health myself ’ and it just went from there.”
Richie, whose wife is from Dundee, has firsthand experience of being welcomed in by a group of supporters after moving to the area from Edinburgh five years ago.
Although he’s not entirely switched his allegiances from Hibs to Dundee, he believes previous walks prove football tribalism is always parked for such events. This will be the group’s third walk after two successful treks last season for the November Dundee derby and the Dark Blues’ meeting with Arbroath in February.
He said: “I only started suppor t ing Dundee
because of the testimonial for Julian Speroni.
“My Scottish team is Hibs because I lived near the area and worked near the training ground, but I’ve got a soft spot for Dundee now.
“Paul and I bonded over that. We did our first Walk and Blether event back in November for the derby. It was the first time that has been done in Scotland for men’s mental health.
“We had Rangers fans holding Celtic scarves and vice versa and this one isn’t just for Dundee and Raith Rovers fans.
“On the last walk we did in February, just before the lockdown, it was Dundee v A r b r o at h and we had United fans on that. It’s for anyone.”