Mike Wilson from the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation previewed this year’s March Of The Day event which kicks off on Friday, March 21st.
Hundreds of footballing fans will be making the 178-mile journey from Wembley Stadium to Portman Road, raising money for the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation.
"We established March of the Day this time last year," claimed Wilson. "We arranged a 170-mile walk between Bradford and Liverpool - not a case of bad map reading, rather visiting a variety of clubs along the way! It was completed over the course of three days, starting at nine o’clock in the morning and finishing at Anfield at 6pm on the Sunday. It was a roaring success, raising over £200,000.
"We wanted to do it again this year, but not the same thing. We wanted to get Ipswich Town involved at some point, therefore we have a similar event down south, starting at Wembley Stadium and finishing at Portman Road.
"I’ve been working with the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation for around five years, now full-time. The concept is that we looked at the work of Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield and what they managed to achieve in the world of rugby. We thought there would be an even bigger catchment area in football, as the Darby Rimmer Foundation was set up by Stephen Darby and Chris Rimmer, with Darby being a former professional footballer. Now we have Marcus Stewart on board, who was unfortunately diagnosed a couple of years ago now, he's very much involved in the foundation so there's a huge football link."
For more information on March of the Day, please click here.
The route starts on Friday morning, finishing at roughly 7pm on the Sunday evening. The total walk will take the group through 26 clubs, including The Valley.
"When Stephen was diagnosed in 2018, he wanted to do something with his football background. One of his brother’s best mates was a chap called Chris Rimmer, ex-British Services, and he was a little further along the lines with MND. He was able to advise and support Stephen as he became accustomed to his diagnosis. Between the two of them, they set up the foundation with three main aims.
"The first is to raise awareness for MND, the second is to provide support for families and all those impacted by the disease. It's life-changing, there's no known cure for the disease and it changes people’s lives massively. That leads me on to the third aim, where the vast majority of the money raised goes towards research projects, trying to find a cure. Our hopes are to replicate last year’s success, allowing scientists to further their research."
Addicks fans can sign up to the walk using this unique link, where participation costs just £10 per person. Former Addicks Matt Holland and Steve Gritt will also be taking part in the event, walking certain stages with the rest of the group.
Click here to register your group of Addicks fans now.
"We're inviting as many people as possible to come and join us. We’d love Charlton fans to come and take part. You can walk any distance by registering online. We had 800 people in total last year and we hope to get near that once again this year. When we get to the ground, we take pitchside photos with each other.
"Content will be posted on our Darby Rimmer Twitter and Instagram. There will be a lot going on there. People can also donate online, with instructions on our website shortly."
