Football fans from Arbroath and Dundee will put rivalries aside this weekend to raise awareness of mental health.
Supporters are set to walk 18 miles from Dens Park to Gayfield ahead of the Championship clash on Saturday between the Red Lichties and the Dark Blues.
The ‘Badge to Badge’ trek has been organised by Richard Peter-Tennant and Paul Murphy of the Walk and Talk Scotland group.
It will be the third such football ground walk, following their first in 2019.
Richard, who also arranges mental health walks around Dundee every fortnight, says the motivation for organising the event came from those close to home.
Motivation for walk
“In Dundee, the mental health stats are bad,” he said.
“Men are three-times more likely to commit suicide than women.
“A couple of our friends are not in a good place at all.
“By using football we find it’s a good way of getting people to open up and speak.
“Our first walk was in 2019, that was the Dundee derby.
A week tomorrow is our @WalkandTalkSco1 walk and talk event Badge to Badge 2 in conjunction with @DundeeFCCT and @ArbroathFCTrust . Plus a wee mention to @penumbra_scot who are also taking part. If on the day we can help @DundeeFSF that would be brilliant as well. pic.twitter.com/DnR8jutAcV
— Walk and Talk Scotland (@WalkandTalkSco1) September 30, 2022
“Not only did we have Dundee and United fans, we had Rangers, Celtic we even had a couple of Palace and Fulham fans come up just for the day.”
Richard says the main reason for the walk is to simply raise awareness of men’s mental health and to get people talking.
The group will be joined by representatives of the Arbroath and Dundee Community Trusts who have launched their own fundraisers.
Money raised will be put towards their own respective mental health programmes.
Around 15 walkers are already signed up but more are expected to turn up on the day.
Badge to Badge Walk!👣
Only 1 week until our Badge to Badge Walk with @WalkandTalkSco1 and @DundeeFCCT!
Any donations would be greatly appreciated! https://t.co/UUbtTQLtn1#ArbroathFCCT|#MoreThanFootball pic.twitter.com/65RDhxJill
— Arbroath FC Community Trust (@ArbroathFCTrust) October 1, 2022
The 52-year-old, from Newport, says anyone is welcome to join them on the route, with former Dundee star Christian Nade taking in a few miles from Dens Park.
“It sounds a lot but I’ve always said ‘do what you can’,” he said.
“If it’s three or four miles that’s perfect. The more people who want to join is fantastic.
“We’ll have a laugh but if you want to talk about your mental health, you can. We are all there to listen and understand.”
Route
The group will set off from Dens Park, down to the city centre and on to the Stannergate.
From there, they will walk the coastal path from Broughty Ferry all the way to Arbroath.
A ‘wee walk’ has been organised for the final couple of miles from Arbroath Golf Links to Gayfield for those who don’t fancy the full route.
Times
Anyone looking to join the walkers will have to set their alarm early. They plan to leave the home of Dundee FC at 8am on Saturday.
They are aiming to leave Arbroath golf course at 1.15 and arrive at Gayfield for 2pm.
Upon reaching their destination, participants will be treated to some refreshments from the Angus club.
If you want to donate
Georgia Carter of the Arbroath Community trust said: “As a Community Trust we aim to improve the life chances of the people of Arbroath.
“This walk will be a great day allowing us to spread awareness about the importance of Mental Health and that it is OK to not be OK.
“Money raised from this event will go directly into increasing our support with some new projects that are in the pipeline.”
To donate to the Arbroath FC Community Trust fundraiser, click here.
To donate to the Dundee FC Community Trust fundraiser, click here.
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