A fundraiser match for former Rochdale star Joe Thompson at the Crown Oil Arena on Saturday 11th May raised thousands for his cancer treatment, which has been diagnosed for the third time.
The Goals For Cure game saw a strong team “Joey T” take on a Celebrity All Stars side to help raise vital funds for Joe’s ongoing treatment. Organised by Joe and former Dale youth player Bader Al-Akkad, the match saw a host of Premier League stars take to the pitch at the Crown Oil Arena, including former Dale favourite Paul McShane as well as Stephen Ireland, Phil Bardsley, Jermaine Beckford and Papiss Cisse.
Joe attended the game after having chemotherapy in the morning, saying “I’ll be back in the hospital tomorrow for more treatment but I know how much I mean to these guys and how much they mean to me, so it was important I did my best to get here. I asked for the army to rise up and they’ve come in their thousands. I’m very privileged and very honoured.”
Joe and his family are aiming to raise £250,000 to cover the costs of his ongoing treatment and to help fund research into ground-breaking testing for the illness, which could save countless lives.
A Gofundme page has raised more than £92,000 (details how to donate can be found on 19th April)
Speaking at the charity match, Joe said “It’s not just about me, there’s a bigger picture. I’m going through my treatment but I really do want to try and create change, particularly around testing and root causes, and why and how people are getting diagnosed. It’s something I’m really passionate about.”
Joe also paid tribute to his wife and family who were at the match to cheer the players on. “My family are keeping me going. It’s often the family who suffer the most, the ones who are watching and closest to you and I know every one of them would swap with me in a heartbeat. Someone could easily say that I’m unluckiest person in world to be diagnosed three times. It’s far from ideal, but I often say adversity creates growth so what can I learn from the situation? I’m learning every day and I’ve got so many people supporting me and keeping me going”