It’s been two years in the making, but the charity match in memory of Adam Stansfield is finally on.
A date has been set for the fixture between a Yeovil Town Legends XI against an XI made up from across South West clubs on Saturday, May 14.
If there’s one thing we can all enjoy as Yeovil Town supporters, it is our glorious past and one player who was there at the beginning was Adam Stansfield.
In many ways he embodied what the beginning of that era having been brought to the club from lower league Elmore by Gary Johnson as he built a squad which would go on to lift the FA Trophy that season – with Stansfield scoring in the final, of course.
A young lad, plucked from obscurity, given a chance and proved his worth; that is a description which could summarise many members of that squad.
It was so unfortunate that he suffered a bad leg break in the opening game of the following season and whilst it was fantastic to see him return to play League football the next year, he had slipped too far down the pecking order and eventually departed for Hereford.
Unsurprisingly, he went on to be a fans’ favourite at Hereford and then Exeter City with his non-stop running and goals.
The response to his death at the age of just 31 after a fight with bowel cancer summed up the feelings of every fan who cheered his name, and this game gives us all a great chance to remember him.
Of course, the game also provides an opportunity to recognise many other club greats who we have lost in recent years. Stuart Housley, Maurice O’Donnell, Bruce James, Tony Trott, Martin ‘Badger’ Baker and, of course, ex-captain Lee Collins.
It also provides an opportunity to unite Yeovil Town as well.
There has been a lot which has happened both on and off the field in recent seasons which has sewn the seeds of division.
Bringing together heroes of yesteryear is something we can all get behind, fill Huish Park and raise plenty of money for the Adam Stansfield Foundation, the charity set up in memory of the striker to help provide opportunities to young people and raise awareness of bowel cancer.
We hope that by the time the game kicks off – or preferably long before then – there will be clarity about the club’s off-the-field situation which continues to paralyse so much at Huish Park.
The ‘will it-won’t it?’ situation around a takeover of the club sadly seems likely to be the subject of many columns past and future – so let’s unite and fill Huish Park for Stanno!