Gosport footballers to play their hearts out for community defibrillator

A CHARITY football match in Gosport will be raising money for a defibrillator that could benefit thousands of people.
Aaron Haggard helped organise a charity match in Gosport earlier this year to raise money for the late AFC Dynamo coach, Ronnie Williamson. Picture: Ian HargreavesAaron Haggard helped organise a charity match in Gosport earlier this year to raise money for the late AFC Dynamo coach, Ronnie Williamson. Picture: Ian Hargreaves
Aaron Haggard helped organise a charity match in Gosport earlier this year to raise money for the late AFC Dynamo coach, Ronnie Williamson. Picture: Ian Hargreaves

Gosport Borough Youth Football Club will be holding a charity match at Privett Park on Saturday, December 1, with the goal of raising enough money to buy a community defibrillator.

The team, which usually plays on the football pitches by HMS Sultan, plays host to around 1,000 players and parents over the course of a weekend.

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Football coach Aaron Haggard said: '˜It's one of those things that we hope we would never actually need to use, but it's so important to have one to hand in the community.

'˜A community defibrillator costs just over £1,000, but anything we raise over that will go towards a second defibrillator, which will be installed at Privett Park itself.

'˜It would be great to do something like that for them after the problems they've had recently with being broken into.'

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Aaron says that the the increasing national media coverage on cardiac issues during sports games has made the issue much more prominent.

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He explained: '˜You hear a lot of stories these days, from professionals to children, who can be affected by cardiac problems while out on the pitch.

'˜It's moments like that where a defibrillator is crucial for saving their life '“ so it's a situation where we would rather take that precaution than take action once something has happened.'

Kick-off for the charity match, being called the Haines Memorial Cup will be at 3pm, with gates opening at Privett Park an hour before the game.

Entry will be £2, with the players also making a donation.

Aaron added: '˜We're hoping to get a few businesses involved with the project, if we can.

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'˜We just want to make as much money as we can to do something that will one day save a life.'

To stay updated with the event, search for the hashtag #HeartAttacksInEverySport on social media.

Any local business that would like to sponsor the event or advertise in the programme can contact Steve King by emailling [email protected].