They have had to brave rain, gales, and some dark, chilly mornings but a team of Everton backroom staff are going strong having passed the halfway point of a month-long challenge to raise funds for Prostate Cancer UK.
The group of eight Blues staff are all running 5k or cycling 10k every day in November to help tackle a disease that kills one man every 45 minutes.
They signed up to Prostate Cancer UK's ‘Prostate United’, joining backroom staff from other professional football clubs around the country in committing to the fundraising feat.
The campaign was started by Stephen Gilpin and Ross Burbeary, two members of coaching staff at Rotherham United, in 2018.
Since then, the initiative has been supported by a slew of representatives from across the English football pyramid, as well as clubs in the USA and Canada, raising more than £80,000 to date.
"I've got friends at Wolves and I saw some of their staff did it last year, so that inspired me a bit to push myself and get involved this time around," said First-Team physiotherapist Carl Howarth, who alongside other members of Everton’s Prostate United team, has been getting in to the Club’s USM Finch Farm training ground early to complete the daily challenge.
"It's been difficult and a mental challenge as much as anything - but it does feel good when you've done it. There's eight of us taking part and it's nice that we're all in it together.
"That's been great because we've been pushing each other. There's been a few mornings when I've not felt great and maybe been feeling stiff from the previous day but they help push you through that, and chatting on the runs takes your mind off it.
"A few members of the group have actually lost close relatives to prostate cancer so it's obviously a cause that's close to their hearts and we all wanted to do what we could to raise some funds and support Prostate Cancer UK."
The staff also taking part in the challenge are Shaun Doran (First-Team Assistant Kit Manager), Kath Farnworth (Medical Services Secretary), Kaita Hasegawa (First-Team Performance Analyst), Josh Jeffrey (First-Team Physiotherapist), Lloyd Parker (Head of Nutrition), Jack Philips (First-Team Strength and Conditioning Coach) and Richie Porter (Podiatrist).
Everton’s Prostate United team will continue clocking up the miles throughout November in the hope of hitting their fundraising target of £1,878.
However, Howarth – an Everton youth team player in the 1990s - admits the challenge didn't get off to the best of starts.
"The first day was horrible," he recalls. "It was like a hurricane. It was wet, cold, windy... disgusting.
"But I remember thinking, 'if we can get through that, we can get through anything'. Thankfully, we've been pretty lucky with the weather since then.
"I have to say, friends, family, everyone at Finch Farm, and staff around the Club have all been really supportive since we started and, as a group, we really appreciate it.
"On behalf of everyone taking part, I’d like to say a big thank you to all those who have donated so far."
To find out more about Everton’s Prostate United challenge, visit their JustGiving page here.
