Does family still exist in the competitive world of Football?
By Joseph, Sub-Editor
In this day and age as football becomes more competitive by the day, it is hard to find a situation where a professional club takes action for a single fan. Today, many club chairmen are just in the game for the money or the prestige, but there are some people who just want to make others smile.
Meet Joshua McCormack, a five-year-old Rochdale supporter has been named in the list of substitutes for the club’s cup game against Hartlepool United on November 9th. Young Joshua was diagnosed with a brain tumour last year and was told it was terminal in September. The League One club have decided to place him in the substitutes for the game against Hartlepool, however, Joshua is too unwell to attend the match, although a shirt with his name will be hung in the dressing room and he will feature on the players list on programmes, in which he wears the number 55.
The Rochdale manager Keith Hill states “he has touched the hearts of everyone at Rochdale since we met him for the first time back in February. No child should have to go through what Joshua is going through and we, as a club and a group of players, will continue to do whatever we can to support him and his family. We hope this one small gesture can bring some light to his family during this difficult time.”
Comparing this to the price of a family ticket for a game at Anfield, the results are absolutely shocking. The price for two adults and two juniors to attend just one watch is £140. Why couldn’t all football clubs be like Rochdale?
Sadly, in this day and age, not every club is as kind as Rochdale, and many clubs and people just enter the game for money. Although this is becoming all too common these days, it is nice to see that club chairman and managers care about their people and their footballing family as much as Rochdale do.