Large gathering of former players turn out in support of CAT Communications' Charities...
CHRIS Marsh will be leading out a team of Saddlers’ Legends tonight in CAT Communications’ final Charity Game at Banks’s Stadium.Marsh will be in charge of the Mad Dogs team which will lock horns with the Cool CATS, a side made up of Saddlers’ supporters who won their place via a Charity Auction.
The game will take place this evening with a 7.30pm kick-off and all monies raised will be split between The Last Chance Hotel Animal Rescue and Balls to Cancer, two charities close to the heart of CAT Communications’ Craig and Penny Lang.
The likes of Adrian Viveah, Ian Roper, Darren Wrack, David Kelly and Stuart Ryder are all set to play along with Dean Smith and Richard O’Kelly in what will be the biggest gathering of former players for some time.
“I’m really grateful to the lads for all agreeing to turn out,” said Marsh, who made almost 500 appearances for the club. “They are travelling from all over the country to be here and, as we’re not ex Premier League players, since retiring from the game, we’ve all had to get ‘proper’ jobs, so it’s good that the lads have made time in their busy lives to take part and help raise money for charity.
“I had no hesitation in agreeing to get involved when Craig Lang asked me to help him put a former players’ team together. CAT Communications have organised a number of Charity Matches here over the years and raised money for some worthwhile charities along the way.
“This will be their last game here and it’s nice to know that we will be raising funds for two organisations very close to their heart in The Last Chance Hotel Animal Rescue and Balls to Cancer.”
It is also set to be Marshy’s final game on the Banks’s Stadium turf.
“My Achilles is not what it was,” he admitted. “It has been giving me grief for some time now and I think it’s time to call it a day from playing.
“This will be the perfect time for me to bow out with a game at Banks’s Stadium, where I enjoyed so many great times during my playing career.
“I have many memories of matches here, so it makes sense to play my final game at the stadium, but it’s not about me, it’s about raising as much money as we can for the charities and having a bit of fun along the way.
“Ask any former player and they will tell you that the daily banter is the biggest thing that they miss. I have certainly missed it and still do, even though it’s been just over ten years since I retired from professional football.
“That’s why nights like this are great for catching up with old faces from the past, be they former team-mates or supporters. You just can’t beat the banter and even though we won’t have seen each other for a long time, that spark will still be there.”
Come and join in the fun. Admission will be £2 (adults) and £1 (concessions) with all monies raised going to The Last Chance Animal Rescue and Balls to Cancer.