A night Worksop came together - part one
Part one of the In Sam's name meeting at Worksop's Windsor Food Service stadium, outlines how the night went from the clubs point of view and the reaction from guest speak Liam Hughes.
The date was Thursday 9th March 2023, Bassetlaw's first mental health support group In Sam's name and Worksop Town Football club came together to have a mental health talk.
There was just short of 20 in attendance, this is one of the biggest turnouts for a In Sam's name meeting. Worksop Town supplied the location in the top room of the clubhouse talisman striker for the Tigers Liam Hughes, spoke about his battles with mental health and how he is looking to draw people away from that dark place.
The show of support from the club has been outstanding, from this meeting we have had people that wanted to come along before this meeting but didn't pluck up the courage to come along. The hardest step is to make the first move and more times than not people have walked through that door, not knowing what to expect and felt much better after making that first move.
The highlight of the night was the inspirational talk from Hughes. The Rotherham born striker spoke about how he had to face mental health issues from an early age after losing his best mate at the age of 13. Hughes spoke in depth about how he moved to Cambridge at the age of 15 on his own, to pursue a dream of making a career within football. He played in a League cup fixture at home to Manchester United, after going into a loose ball tackle with United defender Phil Jones the goalscorer came off worst and slamming the brakes on Hughes professional career.
These two events released very strong emotions inside of Hughes, who said drink and drugs helped him on a short-term basis to escape his demons. However, the feelings were still bubbling inside and it took a series of events before Hughes realised he needed professional help to get his mindset into a better place.
Like everyone who has gone through this stage, the problems will always be there but how he deals with them demons is now spun into a positive pathway to a happy life. The biggest influence in his life is his three daughters who now live in Southampton. Being that far away from his kids has been very hard on not just Hughes but his three daughters, therefore the time he spends with them will be cherished more as visits won't be on a constant basis.
Hughes is now a mental health advocate and is making a difference in local communities around the area, public figures like Liam are key to draw attention and support to causes like In Sam's name. Worksop Town fans will look up to him and his dream debut season for the Tigers has give him a cult following within the club.
The great gesture of going out his way to help people shows his character and his selflessness in giving up his own time to try and make a difference.
Hughes spoke after the event giving his thoughts: "I always do find strength and empowerment from listening to other people and sharing my experience with the hope that people can draw strength from that. Seeing the turnout tonight – sharing my story and listening to other people’s – it was so empowering and it is really, really nice to see that people do still care and that we are trying to make a difference – albeit a very small difference but it still has a difference on people’s lives which is something that I am really passionate about.
“My story is now secret and I put it out there for people to listen to and to take strength from. There are moments that are quite deep and took me back to a dark place but that’s why the scars are there, for me to share with people. From the feedback afterwards after speaking with everyone, it was really well received and a lot of people have taken inspiration from it. If I have affected just one person in that room for the better, then it was worthwhile.
“I have said in my story there that there’s a perception that because, perhaps, I have played first-team football here or because I have been a professional footballer and in the limelight that I am immune to those feelings. But I am a human being and I share the same feelings and values and thoughts as every single person that attended today, so tonight, I believe, was a night to reassure people that I suffer too and even now, at 30 years old, my weeks are still filled with struggles with me going through issues with personal things. Allowing me to share that one, gives me strength, but two, it demonstrates the power of talking which I think In Sam’s Name and the group they have is great and I encourage anyone that is struggling to come down whether they have had a positive week or a bit of a tough week, whatever it is you’re going through, I encourage people to attend because it is such good therapy and such a good thing to be able to talk to new people and it’s a way of not feeling so alone.”
Back To List