Next month Tranmere Rovers Football Club will transform the Kop stand of their home ground, Prenton Park, for a special reason.
On Friday, September 9, the Rovers will be dedicating 135 seats in their Bebington Kop stand to the 135 people who will die by suicide every ninety minutes, the duration of a football game. In place of supporters, the seats will each display a football shirt lent to the club by their supporters to raise awareness of suicide and more importantly suicide prevention.
The fixture has been specifically chosen to mark World Suicide Prevention day, which falls the day after the match, on Saturday, September 10. The World Health Organisation predicts that around the world one person will die every 40 seconds from suicide, meaning that between whistles in a football game, around 135 people will have lost their life.
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The club is also accepting football shirts, if supporters would like to lend their shirts to the display. The shirts will then be returned to their owners at Prenton Park's club shop the following week. Shirts can be dropped off at the club store prior to the game.
Matt Houghton, senior community manager at Tranmere Rovers Football Club, said: "Every day thousands of families and friends across the globe receive the devastating news that a loved one has taken their own life. We want to raise awareness of this issue and encourage anyone who’s struggling to reach out and get the help they need.
"To mark World Suicide Prevention Day, we’ll create a display of football shirts that represent the amount of people estimated to take their own lives in the time it takes for a football match to be played.
If you have a football shirt, you’re happy for us to include in the display, please drop it off into the club shop and be part of our campaign.”
A spokesperson for the Rovers said: "Mental health awareness is something we are passionate about at Tranmere Rovers In the Community, with services available to help improve your mental health. If you are interested in finding out more about these services and getting involved, please email community@tranmererovers.co.uk or give us a call on 0151 608 2354."
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts, or if you suspect anyone you know is, please visit the Samaritans at www.samaritans.org
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