“It was,” she says softly, “quite a blow.”
Catherine, 36 at the time, retreated from her busy life to focus on chemotherapy, steroids and getting better.
Kilmarnock fan Catherine Govans took part in the draw for the 3rd round of SPFL Trust Trophy at Hampden Park in August (Image: Craig Watson) While the medicine did its work, it was a powerful remedy from an unlikely source that would keep her spirits up when she hit a low and, now she’s better, is offering a helping hand to get her fitness back.
A lifelong Kilmarnock supporter who has spent countless seasons at Rugby Park willing her team on, the tables turned.
Instead, it has been Catherine’s turn to feel the power of football’s support.
Not long before her diagnosis, she’d taken part in Football Fans in Training (FFIT), an SPFL Trust programme designed to help participants – whether football fans or not – improve their health through exercise and healthy choices.
Run by Kilmarnock’s charity, The Killie Community, it had helped her shed weight and get fitter: an important head start for her health battle.
It would also become a lifeline as she faced not just the physical toll of chemotherapy but the emotional strain of her illness.
“The people I’d met through Kilmarnock were amazing,” she recalls. “I was in touch with the girls that I’d met while I was doing the FFIT programme.
“They kept me going mentally and even the players sent me a get-well card.”
Kilmarnock fan Catherine Govans was helped through her cancer recovery by the club’s charity (Image: Craig Watson) It’s an element of Scottish football often dwarfed by the negatives that swirl around it: from disappointment on the international stage, half-empty stadiums and clubs in financial dire straits, to Old Firm fans engaged in city centre clashes, defiant fans waving flares, unsavoury chats, offensive tifos and boorish behaviour.
Yet this gentle and caring side to the beautiful game is one Nicky Reid sees daily in her role as CEO of the SPFL Trust, the charity which works in partnership with SPFL clubs to deliver a host of projects that can be both lifechanging and lifesaving.
Increasingly, football clubs, with their unique position within communities and the strong emotional ties that bind them to fans and their families, have become crucial components in the delivery of social support and health care.
“Scottish football is the most attended league per capita in Europe and there’s something really magical about it,” says Nicky, CEO at the Hampden-based Trust since 2017.
SPFL Trust CEO Nicky Reid (Image: Craig Watson) “In spite of the financial drama, or whether or not there are full stadiums, football captures attention of communities and culture in a unique way that draws people in.
“Someone might not go to a mainstream intervention for support, but they might feel more comfortable going to their football club.”
She’s heard of cancer patients like Catherine supported by the camaraderie of a club fitness programme, a woman who embarked on an IVF journey into parenthood after boosting her health at her local club, and men in the depths of despair being helped through their crisis by a shared love of the game.
More recently, football club charities have adapted to meet new social pressures, giving children hot meals, supporting homeless people and those in the grip of poverty.
Nicky tells of one man who visited Aberdeen FC Community Trust’s hub, who told how he could not get pension credit, attendance allowance or winter fuel allowance.
“They found the information he’d been given was not correct and he was eligible for it. He was able to apply and get approval for the benefits,” she adds.
From that one individual receiving support to dozens more: in recent weeks, 38 football clubs across the country, from Annan Athletic to Ross County, Arbroath to Greenock Morton, have held ‘Festive Friends’ events funded by the SPFL Trust.
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Launched in 2016 to offer companionship at a tricky time of year for the socially isolated and elderly, the festive gatherings have served more than 26,000 Christmas meals.
From football clubs have emerged initiatives designed to support people with dementia to others that help divert young people from the risk of offending and into employment.
In Perth, at St Johnstone’s Saints in the Community, there’s been a Moving Through Menopause programme and Aberdeen FC Community Trust’s Dons Families Together project has supported families with hot meals, sessions designed to help with further education, budgeting, positive parenting and signposting for additional help.
For all its divisiveness and bitter rivalries, football has brought opposites on the terraces together: a prostate cancer support group based at Ibrox simply because it’s closer to the treatment centre, has both Rangers and Celtic supporters in its midst.
Old Firm differences set aside, within the group setting the blue and green come together on common ground.
“A lot of people assume that you’d never get a Celtic fan there if we delivered a programme at Ibrox, but that’s so untrue,” Nicky adds.
“The connection they have isn’t that they are fans of that club. It’s that they are a football family.
“And banter breaks down any nervousness and divisions.”
Launched in December 2009 as the SPL Trust with a staff of just one, it began with the ground breaking Football Fans in Training project.
Focussed initially on men’s health and in partnership with the University of Glasgow, it went on to be validated in peer-reviewed studies, including recognition in The Lancet for its benefits as a men’s health intervention.
Clubs across the country soon saw both the value in helping their supporters stay healthy and forging stronger bonds with fans and surrounding communities.
“I think some of the club coaches at first thought we were a bit bonkers, but very quickly they saw the benefits and they really enjoyed it. It has been a success ever since,” says Nicky.
Ideas came thick and fast: Still Game was launched at St Mirren in 2011 to improve the lives of older people. It quickly spread to all SPL – later SPFL – clubs at the time, offering a chance to socialise, take part in activities and improve mental well-being.
Another early project, Music Box, brought young people together at football clubs to learn about the music industry, make recordings and perform.
Football Fans in Training is now offered to men and women at clubs around the country
From small beginnings 15 years ago, 40 of Scotland’s 42 SPFL clubs now have their own charity arm – the 41st is currently awaiting charitable status. Each has its own range of initiatives tailored to meet local needs.
In the past decade, Football Fans In Training participants have lost more than 28,000 kg of weight, Festive Friends has supported almost 11,000 people through the Christmas period, and the flagship The Changing Room project has been established at more than 20 SPFL clubs.
Delivered in partnership with mental health charity, SAMH, the SPFL Trust and associated community trusts, it supports men through a 12-week programme to tackle poor mental health.
Its success has led to an additional programme, The Changing Room – Extra Time, which offers further mental wellbeing support.
During pandemic lockdowns, clubs like Stenhousemuir delivered food packages to people forced to shield. As the cost of living crisis bit, football trusts have emerged at the frontline of supporting people who might otherwise fall through the gaps.
“As we have grown, the community trusts have grown and their work has grown,” Nicky adds.
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“We’re now a team of 11 rather than just two. And although we’re a relatively midsized charity in terms of staffing and turnover, because football is an exciting place to be, people have memories of it, or they are fans, we can capture the attention of people in communities who need help.
“Now we are delivering programmes that help people into work, supporting people with significant mental health challenges, who are disengaged or homeless, struggling to access benefits.”
In 2022, the SPFL Trust unveiled its Football Powered strategy, a three-year action plan which aimed to give its network of charities a role in helping to reduce the impact of poverty in their communities.
More recently, its Innovation Fund has shared £70,000 of funding to seven football charity trusts to deliver projects Big Hearts Journeys, a Tynecastle programme aimed at supporting young people into employment, Partick Thistle Charitable Trust’s Mental Fitness sessions and Dundee United Community Trust weekend clubs for young disabled adults.
“Out of a population of 5.6 million people, 4.5 million live within ten miles of an SPFL stadium.
“They are also three times more likely to experience poverty than people living further away,” says Nicky.
“We are delivering programmes that help people into work, that support people with significant mental health challenges, who are homeless, or struggling to access benefits.
SPFL Trust’s CEO Nicky Reid highlights its new energy efficiency Game Energy project (Image: SPFL Trust)
“The day-to-day football fan probably doesn’t realise that Aberdeen FC Community Trust helped more than six fans out of homeless accommodation last winter.
“Or that The Changing Room has helped prevent suicides.”
One project, CashBack off the Bench, delivered by Falkirk Foundation and St Mirren FC Charitable Foundation, targets young people aged 16-24 most at risk of being involved in antisocial behaviour.
Funded by the Scottish Government’s CashBack scheme, it focuses on supporting personal development with access to education, SQA qualifications and Scottish FA coaching badges, exercise programmes, mentoring and mental health support.
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The SPFL Trust also works with Celtic, Heart of Midlothian and Rangers to deliver the Joy of Moving programme across at least 60 schools, reaching 3,600 children with 32,400 hours of activity and education.
In December, the SPFL Trust has unveiled its ‘Game Energy’ initiative, a collaborative effort with gas distribution network SGN to support people living in fuel poverty.
Larger clubs might have a bigger fanbase and glossier facilities, but smaller clubs have particular power when it comes to engaging with the community around them.
Montrose FC centre back Kerr Waddell serves meals from Montrose Community Trust’s food truck(Image: Montrose Community Trust)At Montrose Football Club, the Community Trust was launched in 2011 when the club was languishing in the doldrums in its sixth consecutive season in what was then the Scottish Third Division.
It might have seemed the worst time possible to consider taking on extra work. Instead, Montrose Community Trust, CEO Chris Platt, says it was one of the best things the club has done.
“Montrose was the worst team in Scottish football at the time,” he says.
“But the football club means so much to the community, as many football clubs do, and it was thought it would be a vehicle for improving the lives of the community.
“And, hopefully, that would reflect on the park.
“Over 12 years, that has been the case, and it’s become one of the most organised and impactful community trusts.”
Montrose Community Trust project manager Logan Cruickshank and Montrose FC centre back Kerr Waddell man the community food truck, used to alleviate the pressures of food poverty(Image: Montrose Community Trust)What began as sport and health and wellbeing groups, now provides life changing support for people who are unemployed, living with dementia, the socially isolated and those living with mental health issues.
There are projects intended to support people who have become inactive, disengaged from mainstream school curriculum and recovering from addictions.
“We pivot depending on what the community wants and what the needs are,” says Chris.
“And at the moment, we’re a health and wellbeing charity that’s moving into employability, food security, poverty alleviation.”
Montrose has a population of around 14,000, he adds. The Community Trust, meanwhile, has delivered 12,000 sessions and support ranging from free meals to Walk and Talk sessions.
“Some will attend a number of times, but that shows people are looking for a number of things,” adds Chris.
Montrose Community Trust’s Big Walk & Talk health and wellbeing initiative has involved hundreds of participants(Image: Montrose Community Trust)
“We see people dealing with so many problems: food poverty, energy poverty, transport poverty. You might think it’s people who are destitute who are accessing our services, but it’s every kind of person you can imagine.
“There’s still a stigma around all of that, and people can be uncomfortable talking about it and sharing what they’re experiencing.”
Their project, Breakfast in the Box, offers morning sessions for children with activities and a meal: it’s a subtle way to quietly relieve financial pressure on parents and provide young people with a healthy start to their day.
Montrose FC Centre Back and MCT Project Officer Kerr Waddell serving Christmas dinners at Festive Friends Christmas event (Image: Montrose Community Trust)
Its recent Free Kicks initiative, funded via The SPFL Trust Innovation Fund, targeted teenagers with street football and a free hot evening meal.
There are mutual benefits, adds Chris. “The football club gets to be seen as community organisation, which it’s always been, and right at the heart of the community.
“So much of what the community trust and football club do is related to what happens on Saturday afternoon.
“The community sees the support it offers throughout the week – even people outside the fan base.”
Montrose Community Trust support over 1,000 people every week (Image: Montrose Community Trust)
Such is the growth of its impact and an expected increase in service usage of up to 50 percent, it is now turning part of the stadium into a bespoke space from which it can deliver its cultural, social and educational activities to the town and people from across the Angus region.
There are also plans to join forces with other north east clubs including Aberdeen FC, to deliver more comprehensive and collaborative projects.
Back at Hampden, and as Nicky reflects on 15 years of the Trust’s work, there are hopes the future will see the breadth and depth of projects offered by clubs’ trusts continue to grow.
Funding, however, is always a challenge: all trusts are independent charities that have to apply for grant funding and to meet their own costs.
While some clubs provide financial support to trusts, others are in financial turmoil themselves.
SPFL Trust CEO Nicky Reid (Image: Craig Watson) And when football-related trouble breaks out among fans, ripples are felt in the SPFL Trust offices at Hampden.
“Every time something bad happens, we hang our heads and wonder if it will make things more difficult for us.
“We can’t escape the rhetoric around the game but perhaps part of our whole story is that we don’t have to look far to see that it isn’t the case all of the time.
“Football fans from around the country do co-exist, they support one another, they have shared experiences.
“We are all human.”