Charity partnership helping football fans open up

Linking up with a suicide prevention charity has helped Worthing Football Club fans open up about their mental health, its supporters' association has said.

This season the club has partnered with Olly's Future, founded by Ann Foley in 2020 after son Olly Hare, who grew up in Worthing, died by suicide at the age of 22.

Foley believes that "everyone involved in football can get behind this message of looking out for someone they might be worried about".

Natalie Lunn, secretary for the supporters' association, said "people have come up and said things to us that wouldn't have happened if we hadn't been supporting this charity".

Olly Hare died at home on February 14, 2017, just two days before his 23rd birthday.

An accomplished linguist and high-achieving student, Foley said a combination of factors led to her son becoming "a bit lost" before spiralling into depression "very suddenly".

Since its creation, Olly's Future has provided suicide prevention training to more than 12,000 people, said the charity.

Foley said: "To think that Worthing Football Club knows about Oliver, and is raising money for our charity, it's phenomenal."

The profits from the 50/50 draw at this weekend's game versus Sutton United will go to the charity.

Nathan Bowen, the club's sporting director, said working with Olly's Future "really resonates with us".

"We see ourselves as a bit of a community hub, so we like to provide an environment hopefully where people can come and be open, and share any issues that they have," he said.

Lunn said the decision to support a suicide prevention charity, particularly one which is "more local", was made with fans in mind.

She said: "We have a predominantly male fanbase, and it is an at-risk group, a hard to reach group, especially men of a certain age that maybe are a little bit socially isolated."

According to the Campaign Against Living Miserably, suicide is currently the leading cause of death in men under the age of 50 across the UK.

Lunn said the partnership had "been really helpful for people to talk about their experiences".

• If you've been affected by the issues in this story, help and support is available via the BBC Action Line.

Acknowledging the "stigma" associated with opening up, particularly for men in a competitive environment, goalkeeper Harrison Foulkes said there was support within this "tight-knit group".

"If anyone did have any sort of issues, they would be able to speak about it, maybe not to everyone, but there's probably at least one person at the club that they can speak to," he said. "I know that's definitely the case for me."

Flying high in fifth place in the National League, Foley has no doubt that Olly would relish this period of success for the Rebels.

She said: "He'd have been here watching, so it's a great loss...but I'm sure he's delighted, I'm sure he's looking on. He'll be with us in spirit."

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram and listen to BBC Radio Sussex on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.