THE sheer bravery of Andy Woodward, Steve Walters and Paul Stewart cannot be commended highly enough.
This week they gave harrowing accounts of the horrific abuse suffered at the hands of Barry Bennell and others.
All of them have had to live with and conceal something terrible that happened to them as kids who had a dream of succeeding in a sport they loved.
With more people coming forward to report the actions of vile human beings, their intervention has given strength to innocent victims who also had their childhoods stolen from them.
While reading Walters’ story, one quote struck me about the inner battle he faced while coming to terms with his ordeal.
He said: “I used to think, ‘Am I gay?’. The culture then was that there are no gays in football… but if it had come out then I would have been hammered.”
Child sex abuse and homosexuality have historically been taboo subjects in football and society.
So put yourself in Walters’ shoes for a moment. With all that had happened in your past, you still make it into professional football showing mental strength that can not be measured.
You are playing in a first-team game on a Saturday, miss a tackle and someone in the crowd shouts ‘Get stuck in, you tart’.
Or maybe your boss or team-mates question your “manhood” in a sport where showing any sign of emotion is seen as being weak.
Through no fault of your own and due to events in your past you’ve questioned your own sexuality. And now you cope with the ordeal on a daily basis. Maybe, if there had been more tolerance and education, these brave men would have been comfortable enough to speak out?
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Instead, they’ve had to wait years to confront something that they have had to live with.
This weekend is the “Rainbow laces” campaign in football, where respect for all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender, is symbolised through wearing coloured laces in football boots.
Some dismiss it as a gimmick, claiming everything is fine in terms of tolerance for LGBT people in football.
Really? I can remember a former manager saying: “If I found out a player was gay, he wouldn’t be anywhere near my team.”
That’s why “Rainbow laces” is so important in promoting tolerance and respect for everyone.
This campaign may enable more people in football to feel comfortable in telling their stories and being themselves with no shame or guilt attached.
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