Spireites In Mind sessions have been taking place on a monthly basis in the 1866 Brampton Brewery Lounge, with the aim of reuniting former players including those who suffer from dementia.
Sean O’Neill, who was involved in the formation of the group, said: “I’d seen that John Breckin had set one up at Rotherham and I’d always been good friends with Ernie Moss, who as we know was struggling with dementia, so I thought it was a great idea.
“It’s a really good idea just to get the lads together, talking and seeing people that you’ve not seen together for a few years and building from there. It’s been really good; we’ve had a few people, so it’s been positive.
“One of the things you don’t realise when you finish playing football is that you might never see the people you’ve worked with again. To see how they’ve got on with their families and the rest of their lives is great.”
Former Sheffield United star Tony Currie, who helps run similar sessions at Bramall Lane, regularly attends the meetings at the SMH Group Stadium.
Tony said: “You get similar crowds that you haven’t seen for so long, but you go from that to seeing them every month and you think to yourself, we should have been doing this every month for 40 or 50 years.
“It (dementia) has been going on for decades and only now it is coming to light, which is a good thing because people are starting to sit up and listen.
“I won’t name names but there are quite a few people that I know who have either been diagnosed, or you can tell they’re starting to forget things. They don’t want to accept it, or they don’t want to come out because they feel embarrassed.
“Don’t feel embarrassed, come out and try and prolong it or even feel as though you’re getting rid of it.”
Urging other clubs to offer and promote these sessions in their communities, he added: “The clubs have got to get involved, I’m so pleased that Sheffield United got involved with it, now there are also sessions here (Chesterfield) and at Rotherham. I know there are a few other clubs around, but we need a lot, we need much more.
“It doesn’t take a lot; it almost pays for itself. It just needs somebody at the club to get on board. It doesn’t take a lot, you just need the contacts to let people know so they can attend.”
Former Spireite Colin Prophett attends the meetings, bringing Bill Dearden who suffers from dementia.
Colin said: “Meeting other ex-pros is absolutely brilliant, you get loads of old stories and it’s brilliant to catch up with people.
“On the memory side of it, everyone forgets things sometimes. But Bill needs help and his wife can’t help him all the time, so I bring him down to the football games and here. He can remember things from 25 years ago as though they were yesterday but struggles with everyday occurrences.
“We go to the sessions at Sheffield United and we’re welcomed wherever we go. We suffered a little bit with lockdown and if we can get back to normal again it would be brilliant.
“He (Bill) can’t remember where we’re going, but when we walk into the room his face lights up. I take him crown green bowling as well and he loves it. I can’t do too much for him, he’s very good.”
