In 2009 Matt Woollias was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma. Matt has launched a charity football team called Matts Legends FC. We interviewed Matt to find out more about the team and their aspirations for the future.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
My name is Matt Woollias and I was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma back in 2009 and it resulted in chemotherapy and a below knee amputation. I now suffer from chronic kidney disease but I love football and sport has kept me fit despite my disability.
Can you tell us about your charity football team and why you decided to set it up?
I originally set up the team in August 2009 when a group of my friends and family played my old football team raising around £2,500 for cancer charities. I then held annual games with the team up until 2019 and then Covid hit. I’ve stopped playing Para Ice Hockey and decided I wanted to get back into football and started playing 5 aside. I’ve since relaunched the team with a Facebook page, sourced a club sponsor (Symonds and Greenham Estate Agents) and we plan to play games as often as possible. My main reason to do this was to raise money for the Bone Cancer Research Trust and to also give myself an outlet in 11 aside football again. We always welcome new players so if any other cancer survivors fancy a game let me know!
What are your aspirations for the team?
I want to keep growing the club and ideally start playing at bigger venues and playing teams of ex-professional footballers or even having ex-professional footballer guests play for us, as that will attract fans to our games and raise even more funds.
Is there anything you would like to say to your team members, supporters and sponsors?
I would like to thank all our players, supporters and our sponsor, Rich Symonds and Joe Greenham, as without them this wouldn’t be possible.
To find out more about Matts Legends FC, please visit their Facebook Page, below:
We would like to thank Matt and everyone involved in Matts Legends FC for all their amazing support. Your support enables us to continue with our life-saving work.
