Latest / The PCR Sports Show / The PCR Sports Show - Friday 9th January 2026 - Steve Thorpe, co-founder of the Free Kicks Foundation

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The PCR Sports Show - Friday 9th January 2026 - Steve Thorpe, co-founder of the Free Kicks Foundation · The PCR Sports Show

0:16
Welcome to PCR Sports. Good evening and welcome to the
0:21
PCR Sports Show here on Friday evening.
0:24
Thank you for joining us for the start of your sporting weekend.
0:28
I'm Neelesh. And as always on our show, which
0:30
is every Friday between 6:00 and 7:00, we'll be discussing the
0:35
local highlights and low lights of the sporting scene in and
0:38
around our city of Peterborough. Tonight our guest is Steve
0:43
Thorpe from the Free Kicks Foundation.
0:46
For many of you who will probably know who the Free Kicks
0:49
Foundation are, but for those who don't, it's a charity whose
0:52
aim is to give I'll disadvantaged and bereaved
0:55
children a day out at their favorite football club.
0:58
So using the power of football and sport to help make people's
1:03
lives better, especially of those of children.
1:07
Steve, welcome. We'll be chatting to you very
1:10
shortly, but as always, let's cover off those local sporting
1:14
headlines and this week they're brought to you by DIPAM.
1:16
Thank you Nilesh, good evening Peterborough and here are your
1:18
sporting headlines this evening on PCR Sport, starting with
1:22
football. Peter United suffered a heavy
1:24
defeat away at Lincoln City on Sunday.
1:27
Despite taking the lead, the Posh were ultimately beaten 52
1:29
by the Imps. Harry Leonard and Carol Lisby
1:32
were on the score sheet for Peterborough.
1:34
Peter United women returned to action this Sunday for their
1:36
first match of the new year. They travelled to Stourbridge FC
1:39
for a 2:00 PM kickoff, hoping a victory will make contain their
1:42
lead at the top of the National League Division 1 N the
1:45
division. Midland sorry big upon the
1:48
poshest last two fixtures against Notts County and Lincoln
1:50
City were postponed due to following their exit from the FA
1:54
Cup in December. Peter of Sports recent fixtures
1:57
have fallen victim to the weather with the last two
1:59
matches away at Fylde and at home to Marine both postponed.
2:03
The Fylde fixture has been rearranged for Tuesday the 3rd
2:05
of February. The Turbines are hopeful of a
2:08
return to the action next Saturday when they make a long
2:11
trip to Merthyr Town. In ice hockey, Peter of Phantoms
2:14
endured a disappointing weekend with back-to-back defeats,
2:17
losing 4/2 to the Basingstoke Bisons on Saturday before
2:20
suffering A54 reverse at home to the Swindon Wildcats on Sunday.
2:24
This weekend the Phantom has travelled to face Leeds Nights
2:27
on Saturday before hosting the Bristol Pit Bulls on Sunday for
2:30
a 5:30 PM face off hockey. This is the update from Dave
2:34
Simpson from the City of Peterborough Hockey Club.
2:37
The coming week sees the resumption of the East League,
2:39
with nine of the club's 13 teams in action in the National League
2:43
Conference does not, although the National League Conference
2:46
does not resume until the 31st of January and the three teams
2:50
are fixtures postponed to later dates, weather permitting, this
2:54
week's features are as follows. At home on Saturday are the
2:57
men's fifths versus the men's fourths in an Inter Club match,
3:00
The men's seconds take on Cambridge University seconds,
3:04
the women's seconds versus the Pelicans first, the men's
3:07
sevenths take on the men's sixths in another Inter Club
3:10
match and the men's eighths take on Ely Thirds.
3:14
And the away fixtures are at midday starting at Ely thirds
3:18
versus the women's fifths and the Cam City Force will take on
3:23
the women's first. And that one is a top of the
3:25
table clash with our with the ladies level on points but
3:27
currently leading the division on goal difference.
3:31
On Sunday the home matches are the girls Under fourteens versus
3:33
Ipswich in the National Club Round 3 and away are the Under
3:37
14 boys at Harleston Magpies also in the National Cup Round
3:42
3. In roller hockey Peter edged A
3:45
thrilling Premier League hockey roller hockey encounter on
3:48
Saturday, beating Letchworth 65 in a fast-paced end to end
3:51
contest at Bushfields. After conceding early, Peter
3:55
responded superbly with A to lead 51 at half time.
3:58
Letchworth mounted a strong second-half fight back but the
4:01
hosts held firm to secure the three points.
4:04
Harry Hilliam Hillam, Beg Your Pardon was a standout performer
4:07
scoring four goals and claiming man of the match and the other
4:10
goals came from Michael Carter and Luca Oakley.
4:14
In athletics, the indoor track and field season got underway at
4:17
Lee Valley on New Year's Day with the London Indoor Games
4:20
where several Peterborough and Lean Valley Athletics members
4:24
were in action. Elise Morgan impressed with in
4:26
the under fifteens finishing first in both the 60 meters and
4:30
the 300 meters with times the 7.99 and 41.63 respectively.
4:36
Fellow under fifteens Amelia Mullins and Xenachide the
4:41
Xenachide Namawa recorded in recorded in the 60 meters of
4:46
8.31 and 8.41 and also running in the 40.
4:50
In running 45.03 in the 300 meters, Eden Jill Duncan clocked
4:56
to 69.86 in the under fifteens, 400 meters and in the under
5:00
seventeens, Iris Kawi ran 8.08 in the 60 meters well.
5:05
Callum Bau posted 41.72 in the 300 meters and under 20 athlete
5:10
Alfred Hadfield recorded 7.53 in the 60 meters and 50.53 point
5:16
1/3 in the 400 meters and in the senior men's 400 meters Harry
5:20
Friend clocked 56.13. So well done to all of them.
5:25
Panvac enjoyed a strong showing at the Cambridgeshire Cross
5:27
Country Championships, winning 14 medals and 14 medals and two
5:33
individual honours. The girls Under thirteens took
5:35
silver the and bronze medals for the senior men's and the under
5:39
17 teams. The seven The senior men
5:41
impressed on IC course at St. Neots with all six scoring
5:44
runners finishing inside the top 30.
5:48
Warrington Warrington jogger Henry Jarvis claimed victory in
5:51
the competitive Westfield 7.5 K trial race in Sussex.
5:55
Jarvis, originally from Sussex, joined the club in 2024, crossed
5:59
the line in 28 minutes and 54 seconds and that set a new
6:03
winter course record. It's the fitting way for him to
6:05
round off his running year. And finally in cricket, former
6:09
guest and local cricketer Nick Andrews is heading off on his
6:12
travels once again having been selected for the England Over
6:15
70s for the Ashes and the World Cup.
6:17
The former Peterborough Town All Rounder, now with Market
6:19
Deeping, will take part in the Silver Ashes in Australia before
6:23
travelling to New Zealand for the Age Group World Cup.
6:26
England will be defending both titles, having won the World Cup
6:29
in 2024 and the Ashes in 2020. Three.
6:32
And those are your headlines on PCR Sports?
6:34
Brilliant. Thank you.
6:35
Very much Dipam, right? It's a bit of Posh chat, I
6:39
think, because we've got Steve Thorpe in the studio and we'll
6:42
talk about Free Kicks Foundation very shortly.
6:46
But yeah, a decent Christmas and New Year for Posh.
6:49
Yeah, I think despite the defeat at Lincoln on Sunday, was it?
6:54
It was Sunday. Yeah, it.
6:55
Was. But yeah, Despite that defeat,
6:57
five wins and a draw before that, it all is brilliant return
7:01
really from where we were and was it October time near the
7:06
bottom of the league and now we're mid table, nice safe still
7:10
still with outside chance of the playoffs if we can put into the
7:12
little run like that together. But I think we're averaging over
7:15
2 points a game in the last 10 games.
7:18
So you've got to be got to be happy with that from where we've
7:21
come from. So fingers crossed tomorrow
7:23
against Bolton we can get we can get another three points on the
7:26
board. Yeah, you take the Lincoln
7:28
fixture out of it and in terms of the the defensive
7:31
performances and the goals that have been scored as well as the
7:36
clean sheets that have been kept, it's been, you know, a
7:39
much improved from Peter B United in December.
7:42
Yeah, and even at Lincoln for the first half hour, I thought
7:44
it was the best half hour of football I've seen since Luke
7:47
Williams came in. And and then obviously it all
7:50
went a bit wrong after that. But for the first half hour, we
7:52
were just, we were just all over Lincoln and, and looked like we
7:55
were going to score nearly every time we went forward.
7:58
But yeah, then then the linesman got injured and it all went
8:01
wrong after that. But yeah, yeah, you've got,
8:03
we've got to be happy with the the form at the moment and
8:06
couple of home games coming up, hopefully get some more points
8:09
from them. Yeah, Bolton at home tomorrow
8:11
and then is it Plymouth at home next?
8:13
Week, yeah, Bolton tomorrow, Plymouth at home and then have
8:16
we got a midweek away game then? No, Got Wickham away on the 23rd
8:20
and then we've got Stevenage. Two away games after that, yeah,
8:23
yeah, yeah. I think if we can have a have a
8:26
good January, you don't know who's going to come in, who's
8:29
going to go out, if we can get another couple of players in,
8:33
obviously with all the injuries that are still happening at the
8:35
moment. So yeah, fingers crossed we can
8:39
have a good end to the season. Yeah, You know, if January is a
8:42
+1, you don't know where you could, where you could be, you
8:44
know? Close.
8:45
Isn't the league so close? It was like 8 points between
8:48
23rd and 8th the other week. So it's it's so close.
8:52
You have a little run of two or three wins and you're right,
8:55
right up there. And that's why it's going to be
8:56
so important. January, yes, December's been
8:58
great in terms of the results, the points picked up.
9:01
But January, not just from a playing perspective and results
9:04
on the pitch, but also from the insurance and outs from the
9:07
transfer window as well, which at Peterborough United, you
9:10
know, it's normally a busy time. Yeah, yeah, I think.
9:14
Sounds like there's a few going out.
9:15
Lolos obviously left on loan today to Crawley.
9:18
It sounds like there'll be a few more and maybe a couple more in
9:22
to where we're where we're short because of the injuries and
9:26
because of, you know, if people want to go.
9:29
And play football, yeah. People want to go and play
9:30
football. People on the on the edge of the
9:32
squad aren't going to get in because it's such a big squad
9:36
because of what happened in the summer with not getting the
9:39
players out. So yeah, hopefully for a
9:42
positive January. Starting with Bolton at home
9:45
tomorrow, yeah. I won't predict it.
9:48
I won't have to go. A prediction he's reunited
9:51
isn't. It Joel Randall back in Atlanta
9:52
Rd. yeah we're lucky with the lucky with the snow not arriving
9:56
so fingers crossed yeah the pitch is nice and it'll.
10:00
Certainly be heavy bone it amount of rain, yeah.
10:02
Yeah, but it'd be, I know they've protected it this week
10:05
with the with the covers. So yeah.
10:07
So it'll be on and good win hopefully.
10:10
Fingers crossed, right? That's the posture over with for
10:13
this evening. We're just going to take a very
10:15
short break and we'll be back with Steve to talk all about the
10:17
Free Kicks Foundation. You're listening to PCR Sports.
10:32
Welcome back. This is the PCR Sports Show here
10:35
on PCR FM. Thank you for joining us for the
10:38
start of your sporting weekend. We've got Steve Thorpe with us
10:42
this evening. He's from the Free Kicks
10:44
Foundation. They are a charity whose aim is
10:47
to give I'll disadvantaged and bereaved children a day out at
10:50
their favorite football club. Steve, welcome back.
10:55
It's not your first. Not your first rodeo here, is
10:57
it? No.
10:58
I've been before, I know what I'm doing.
11:03
The Free Kicks Foundation, I mean, it's just going from
11:04
strength to strength, isn't it? Yeah, it's, it's just brilliant.
11:07
It's just the way we've way we've grown over the over the
11:10
last few years. It's just the amount of
11:14
children. I think last season we we do
11:17
about 270 kicks that we call them.
11:19
So the kick is the day out at the match, mostly as mascots,
11:23
but some clubs we have to do it as a hospitality or just
11:27
tickets. But yeah, it's, it's grown from
11:30
when we first started when we thought we might do 5A season to
11:34
over 200 a season. And obviously we're getting
11:36
close to our two thousandth kick now as well.
11:39
So, and that's just the mascot days.
11:41
We, we, we do ticket schemes as well.
11:43
So we've we've given treats to over 2000 men, way over 2000
11:48
children and families. Let's just go back then to all
11:52
those years ago. When did it all start?
11:55
How did it all start? What was the sort of thought
11:57
process behind it? And I'm guessing you just can't
12:00
imagine how where you are now. That's our.
12:04
First mascot was at a posh Man United friendly in 2006, so
12:10
we're coming up to the 20th. Obviously this is the 20th year
12:13
of Kicks. We've became an official charity
12:15
in 2007 and yeah, it was just an idea and myself and Sam took it
12:22
on and just grown it from like, say from what we thought might
12:27
we do 5 or 10 mascots a season into now I'm, I'm working it as
12:32
my part time job. So fingers crossed now with that
12:36
we can we can go on and do even more. 20 years later, then
12:42
approaching 2000 kicks. But that doesn't account for the
12:46
number of sisters, sons, daughters, you know, the the
12:52
extended families that have been touched by the work that you do.
12:55
Yeah, you, you always get to, you know, we, we, we like to be
12:58
inclusive, include the families in the in the days out and and
13:02
making sure that siblings get because because they're, they're
13:06
going through tough times as well.
13:07
It's not this the children who are poorly, the siblings are
13:09
going through tough times as well.
13:11
So we get them included. We actually had today we've
13:15
we've had some pictures from a mascot we did at Huddersfield.
13:20
I think it was on the Sunday, this Sunday's game when they
13:22
played, when they played Exeter. And some of the pictures are
13:25
amazing. And the family have given us
13:27
such brilliant feedback on on the the day that Reggie had at
13:31
Huddersfield versus Exeter where he was mascot and he went out
13:34
with the players and met all the players and, and they all signed
13:37
his program and, and everything. So, yeah.
13:41
So it's, it's just, it's just really heartwarming to hear the
13:44
stories of not just the children, but what it means to
13:49
their parents as well after the, you know, they've, they've been
13:51
through tough times with their children.
13:53
And 20 years ago, you kind of been, you might have had a
13:57
dream, but the scale of growth and what's happened in this,
14:02
let's say the last five years effectively as well since COVID,
14:05
the, the impact that the charities had on children and
14:09
the extended family. Yeah, exactly.
14:11
At the time we we did it and when we started, it was just
14:14
poorly children. We we didn't fall.
14:16
And because of everything that's happened in the world since
14:19
then, we've kind of grown the scope into there's so many
14:22
children who going through tough times, not just because they're
14:24
poorly, but through the cost of living crisis and, and, and
14:27
everything that's happened with COVID and everything.
14:29
So yeah, so since since then it's just like you said growing
14:33
out of all proportion and now we're we're doing work a lot
14:37
with the foundations now since probably more since COVID.
14:42
And that's the football club foundations, the.
14:44
Foundations and the trust of the football club charities and they
14:48
obviously know the children and families in their areas that are
14:52
affected by everything that's going on.
14:55
So they they know the children through their schemes, through
14:57
their school, free school dinners, programs and everything
15:01
that they do because these football clubs show is do so
15:05
much good work. We were talking about the Posh
15:07
Foundation, how much good work they do earlier.
15:11
And we started that off at Walsall and Walsall's kind of
15:14
almost our second club now. And that we we go there once a
15:17
season and Adam, who's the head of the foundation is brilliant.
15:21
They gave us an award last year which was really humbling and
15:25
yeah, we and we have a mascot at every Walsall home game now and
15:30
we've kind of extended that to other clubs all around the
15:33
country. And also the blueprint.
15:36
Yeah, that was, that's kind of the model for the way way we did
15:39
this. So we contact the foundations,
15:42
they we see if they're interested in working with us.
15:46
We then buy the mascot packages from the clubs and then the
15:48
foundations nominate the children to be the, to be the
15:53
mascots. And we're doing that, I'll say
15:55
all over the country now we've got Wrexham, Burton, Altringham,
15:58
Kilmarnock, up in Scotland, Bradford, Notts County, Barrow
16:02
and Port Vale are some, just some of the clubs that we do
16:04
that with where we provide 5 or 10 mascots throughout the
16:07
season. And we, we went to, we went to
16:10
Port Vale on the Saturday before Christmas with Posh and they
16:14
treated us to hospitality, which was, which was obviously really
16:17
nice. But we then got to go down onto
16:19
the pitch side and meet some of the mascots who were it was just
16:22
loving it despite how cold it was there and how wet it was and
16:26
everything and how well Port Fell were doing at the time,
16:29
they were they were just loving everything about the day.
16:32
So yeah, it's just amazing to get to see the the faces of the
16:36
kids and the families feedback. Yeah.
16:40
And I, I guess having that experience of actually going to
16:43
a game, meeting those families just make it really heartwarming
16:48
and humbling and actually feel like, yes, we are doing the
16:51
right thing here. Yeah, exactly.
16:52
I think since COVID, we haven't done as much as that as we used
16:55
to because of the all the protocols around around now.
16:58
We used to go when we had mascots at Posh.
17:00
We used to be go go on the tours and everything into the dressing
17:03
rooms and meet the players and with the kids and see all the
17:06
interaction. But we don't do that as much now
17:09
just because of everything. Security is a bit tighter around
17:12
around the the players tunnels and everything.
17:15
But yeah, when we do get to do that, excuse me, like we did at
17:18
Port Vale and hopefully we will do at Bradford.
17:20
One postcard to Bradford in in February.
17:23
It's just really nice to get the feedback.
17:26
We also did that at Plymouth early in the season and one of
17:28
the parents came over and said how much it meant to the little
17:31
boy to be a a mascot at Plymouth and how much the days meaning to
17:36
him. And that's your driver, I guess,
17:38
exactly that. That was, you know, for some and
17:40
yourself, you know, to hear those words directly from
17:44
families, children, that really must drive you to continue what
17:48
you're doing. Exactly.
17:49
That's, that's, that's what, you know, makes us do what we want
17:51
to, you know, all the fundraising, all the work that
17:54
we do now to, to arrange the days.
17:57
It's just yeah. And obviously we we get a lot of
18:00
people helping us to, to do the fundraising, the events that we
18:04
have, people running marathons, running half marathons.
18:08
Jumping out planes, yeah. Planes, which is happening,
18:10
something that's happening later that in May this year, we've got
18:13
three people jumping out a plane over at Simpson and hopefully
18:19
we'll get a few more people interested in that and raise a
18:22
bit more money so we can just do so we can give more kids.
18:26
Those opportunities, yeah. And going back 20 years, you've
18:33
grown in terms of the impact that you've had on communities,
18:37
not just locally within Peterborough now, but across
18:39
England, Wales and Scotland. Yeah, nothing quite in Northern
18:42
Ireland yet. We.
18:46
Testing you now. No, we have done.
18:48
We did send someone to public of Ireland game okay last season,
18:53
okay, but don't we haven't done anything normal nice.
18:57
There's still plenty of scope there then, yeah.
18:59
Still, yeah, it's still work to do, but we've got this week.
19:05
I managed to yesterday, I managed to arrange tickets for
19:08
the Spurs FA Cup game tomorrow. Just at the last minute just
19:13
somebody came to us and said can you get them?
19:15
And because they're not doing so well at the moment, it was quite
19:18
easy to get quite easy to get some tickets for the cup game
19:21
tomorrow. So yeah, again, that's somebody
19:24
that was through Young Lives that we, we, we work with a lot
19:28
of charities as well as the community foundations.
19:30
We work with Young Lives Versus Cancer, Children's Eyes, Cancer
19:35
Hospital down in London and just charity Birmingham Children's
19:39
Hospital. We'll come on to that.
19:42
We're going to have to take a short break here, but we'll come
19:44
on to that. In terms of how children get
19:46
nominated, the other partners that you work with, because
19:50
that's just as important. You know, yes, you might be the
19:53
ones providing it, but you can't do the work that you do without
19:57
having those relationships with the communities across this
19:59
country. We can't do anything without the
20:02
children's being nominated, nominated to us, so.
20:05
Yeah, OK, cool. Right.
20:06
Let's take a short break and we're back with Steve from the
20:08
Free Kicks Foundation very shortly.
20:21
You're listening to PCR Sports. Good evening, welcome back.
20:30
This is the PCR sports show you're listening to on PCR FM
20:34
here for the start of your sporting weekend.
20:38
If you haven't missed any of the show this evening, you can
20:40
listen back if you just go through to thepcrfm.co.uk
20:46
website or download the app, the PCR FM app, you can just hit the
20:51
listen again button and you'll be able to catch up on this
20:53
evening's show. Our guest is Steve Thorpe.
20:58
He's from the Free Kicks Foundation, a charity, a
21:01
national charity whose aim is to give I'll disadvantaged and
21:06
bereaved children a day out at their favorite football club.
21:11
And it's been going 20 years now.
21:12
Did you say Steve? Yeah, 22,000 and six was the
21:14
first kick so but we came to official charity in 2007, so
21:19
hopefully a nice celebration next year for, for for 20 years
21:23
as a official charity, yeah. Talked about it in the first
21:28
half an hour of the show, just in terms of how you've grown and
21:31
the impact that you've had on children, their siblings, the
21:35
families and extended families when they're going through such
21:38
a a challenging time. But how do you get to know about
21:42
these children? What's the sort of, I suppose,
21:45
process, the nomination process for these children to experience
21:48
what they do at their football clubs?
21:51
We, we get a lot of nominations from, as I said, early young
21:53
lies versus cancer. They'll they've got people in
21:57
the hospitals and working with the children and they send us
22:00
through nominations for children who who want to want a day out
22:07
at the football. We also get nominations through
22:10
the website. We got we get quite a few
22:12
nominee mostly pretty much every week.
22:14
We get a couple of nominations where people see us on the web,
22:18
on, on the Internet and, and send us nominations through the
22:23
contact form on the website. And obviously, like I said
22:26
earlier, through the foundations at the, at the football clubs.
22:29
So they they know the children in their area who can, who need
22:33
the need the boost, need the day out and, and can do and and it's
22:39
easy for them to work with those children.
22:41
And it just gives those children a chance just to forget about
22:45
what they're going through, you know, which could be, you know,
22:49
for weeks, months, suddenly years at times as well, you
22:52
know, just that space for themselves.
22:54
Yeah, it gives them a, you know, the boost on the day, but also
22:56
gives them memories that they can look back on.
22:59
You know, we've had families of, of children who've passed away
23:02
suddenly after, after having their days out.
23:05
And their families will say that that gave them something.
23:09
They were always talking about it, always talking about that
23:12
day right up, you know, right up to the end.
23:14
So it just gives them and it gives the families some, some
23:18
really good memories to, you know, to look, to look back on.
23:23
Yeah, gather your thoughts that you know, when you when you
23:26
think of it like that and you, you see the impact that you're
23:29
having alongside Sam Downing, who works with you to provide
23:34
these kicks through football. I mean, such a powerful message,
23:41
isn't it? Yeah, well, you know, we all
23:43
love football every year. Every year there's football.
23:46
And you know what, what a boost football gives to you as a you
23:50
know, when when Posh win, you know, that makes the weekend,
23:52
doesn't it? So, you know, to give the
23:54
children and the families a day out at the football and whether
23:59
the team wins or loses, they still have a have a brilliant
24:02
day and they built some, some memories.
24:05
The kids get to meet the players, they get to, you know,
24:07
they get to go out the pitch, have a kicker out, they get to
24:09
meet Peterborough and all the other mascots or the clubs
24:12
around the country. And and yeah, it's just a a
24:15
brilliant day for them, especially as the mascots.
24:18
Yeah, you mentioned a few of the clubs in the first half of the
24:21
show. We're talking what Barrow,
24:24
Kilmarnock, Huddersfield, you know, there's a whole breadth of
24:29
football clubs of different sizes.
24:30
So again, it's testament to the relationships that you've got
24:33
within those local communities. Yeah, exactly.
24:35
We we, we get a lot of nominations obviously for the
24:38
bigger clubs, which is really, really tricky to, to doing
24:41
things. So we, we kind of try and push
24:43
them into going to a more local club.
24:46
There's people who live in Colchester, want to go to Man
24:48
United. It's like, well, just go to
24:50
Colchester. Have have a really, really good
24:52
day at Colchester United. We've actually been lucky this
24:55
year that we work now work with Manchester City.
24:58
They contacted us earlier this year and said they'd like to
25:01
work with us. We've got a contact in the
25:03
charities department of Manchester City and whenever we
25:06
get a Manchester City nomination now we we just pass it over to
25:12
them and, and they organise it within a week of the
25:15
relationship with Manchester City, starting with a mascot at
25:18
the Manchester Derby, which you know is just amazing.
25:23
But it just shows how far the charity's, you know, established
25:26
itself in those twenty years and built up that recognition within
25:30
the footballing community. Yeah, exactly.
25:32
And now we just need to find that same person at all the
25:36
other big clubs, at the Liverpools, at the main nights,
25:38
at the Arsenals. And do you find that once a club
25:42
has followed, you know, when, when the club comes on board,
25:44
for example, do other clubs see that and follow suit?
25:47
Are either you've now broken into man cities and and things
25:50
like this could spread throughout the Premier League at
25:52
the higher levels and and because it ultimately just shed
25:55
a good light on the club. Exactly.
25:57
That's the right hope, doesn't it?
25:58
That's the hope. I think that now we are working
26:01
in Man City people that the other bigger clubs can also,
26:05
they'll see it and, and want to work with us.
26:07
I know that there are other charities around that do similar
26:11
things like Make a Wish and and things like that, but I don't
26:14
think there's anybody that just focuses totally on on football.
26:18
We have, we have been talking about diversifying into other
26:21
sports as well. So whether we do rugby league,
26:23
cricket, ice hockey and, and, and, and doing things like that.
26:27
But obviously at the moment it's just football and there's no
26:29
other charity out there that just gives days out at football.
26:33
And Man City is a good coup, isn't it?
26:35
Because arguably they've been at top of the English game for the
26:36
last best part of the last 10 years.
26:38
That's. Amazing.
26:38
When we've got that e-mail, it was a whoa, here we go.
26:41
This is this is just brilliant. And and they don't charge us for
26:44
anything. Yeah, we've also worked with
26:46
Brentford, Leeds and Wolves this season and they haven't charged
26:49
us for the mascots we've done there.
26:51
Just the one off mascots that we've done there, which is
26:54
amazing. And and what's what it's what it
26:55
should be like really. There's clubs earned.
26:57
There's so much money in the Premier League, they shouldn't
27:01
worry about £300 for a mascot package, should they say?
27:05
But yeah, it's it's brilliant that we're we've got that
27:09
recognition at Manchester City and hopefully we can work on now
27:14
getting the relationship with the other bigger clubs.
27:17
And that's the kick side of things, that's the nomination
27:21
side of things. There's obviously a lot of
27:23
activity that goes on that's unseen in terms of supporters
27:29
doing fundraising activities for you.
27:31
And over 20 years you've done some phenomenal charitable
27:36
events, golf days, quizzes, skydives, walks, cycle rides,
27:42
cycle rides. I mean a message for those, I
27:47
guess those supporters that have got.
27:49
This position, you know, we get, we do get a lot of support,
27:52
especially from Posh funds, but also from other clubs, fans as
27:56
well. You know, we, we get messages
27:58
from people who want to run marathons first.
28:02
We've got, we've actually been lucky enough to get a space in
28:04
London Marathon next year 2027, which is which is really good.
28:09
We've just got a place in the ballot.
28:11
We've got people running the Brighton Marathon for this year.
28:15
Last three years we've had the London Half Marathon, big half
28:21
places that have all sold out quickly and people run, run them
28:25
for us. Yeah.
28:26
And we haven't done the cycle ride.
28:27
It's probably since before COVID now.
28:30
Yeah, probably since before COVID.
28:31
We haven't done a big cycle ride, but in the past.
28:33
What was it? Yeah.
28:34
What was a big cycle ride? Paris twice, Brussels twice.
28:40
And they're really brilliant events that, you know, a lot of
28:44
people got involved in and give up their time, spend a lot of
28:47
money, you know, organizing the travel, excuse me, travel and
28:51
everything. But yeah.
28:52
So this at the moment, quiz night and the golf day are our
28:59
big ones during the year. We've got our golf day, which is
29:02
always at Thorny Lakes in September 7th, September the
29:06
18th this year, which is always a brilliant day, always sells
29:08
out. You come along the election and
29:10
it's, it's just a fantastic day with people coming along
29:14
spending money on raffle prizes and auctions, having a nice meal
29:18
and a nice game of golf and, and, and raising money for us.
29:21
We, we do a quiz night every year.
29:24
It's March the 13th this year at the fleet.
29:29
Details will be on the website and on the Facebook pages for
29:32
that soon of how you can get involved in that.
29:35
And what's the website address? It's Free Kicks foundation.org
29:39
and you can find us on all social medias at Just With Free
29:42
Kicks Foundation. And that's Instagram, Facebook.
29:45
Twitter, Facebook, yeah, so or everything goes on onto those
29:50
pages and, and people can get involved.
29:52
So yeah, quiz night again, it's always a really good night.
29:54
People come back, it's always sells out and we get 2025 teams
29:59
there every year and the sport keeps going back and helping us.
30:04
And the more more of that, the more money we can raise to give
30:09
more children days out. Yeah, you've also got a handful
30:14
of people doing a skydive this year as well.
30:16
Yeah, that's. Come up this week we've got
30:19
three people, 3 ladies actually and then the other two people
30:23
who were interested in ladies as well.
30:25
So we haven't got any men doing you won't get me jumping out but
30:29
I'll stay on me bike. Yeah, that's they're doing it in
30:34
May. But we've now got a relationship
30:37
with the people at Simpson and we can organise are the days
30:40
where if people want to do a skydive for us, get in touch
30:45
through the website. There's a, there's a contact
30:46
form on the website or through social media pages.
30:50
But yeah, we've got that. And there's there's an event
30:54
that Posh funds are going to be interested in coming up in May.
30:57
Can't say too much about it at the moment because we're just
30:59
finalizing the details. But all Posh funds will want to
31:03
be at that OK in May. OK, play a final at Wembley.
31:10
Maybe not. You never know, you never know,
31:14
you never know. We digress, We digress.
31:19
It's Salmon yourself that obviously front up the charity
31:22
in terms of the work that you know, the great work that you
31:24
did behind the scenes to make sure that these kicks take
31:27
place, the relationship that you built with all the foundations.
31:30
But you've got ambassadors, trustees, there's people
31:35
offering you that support and guidance.
31:37
Yeah, exactly. We've got we've got a really
31:39
good group of trustees, including yourself who who help
31:43
us out and, you know, keep us keep us on the strength now and,
31:47
and keep us keep us motivated and and yeah, it's ambassadors.
31:52
We, we are going to look for a few more ambassadors because a
31:54
lot of we met the ambassadors when they were still players at
31:59
Posh. And obviously they're all
32:00
retired. They're all going to be old and
32:01
retired now. So we need a few more player
32:03
ambassadors out there. It's something again, something
32:05
that I'm working on over this year.
32:08
But yeah, it's we, we have a support from, from, you know,
32:12
all over helping us out and making sure that the governance
32:16
of the charities is, is right. And we have quarterly trustee
32:20
meetings where we report, Sam and I report back on what we've
32:24
been up to and how much money we've raised and how many kicks
32:27
we've done and, and how things are going.
32:29
And yeah, hopefully recruiting another couple more trustees in
32:32
the next couple of weeks as well.
32:33
So yeah, it's, it's all all grown.
32:36
Like I said, like we said earlier, it's grown from that
32:39
little idea and hobby kind of thing back in 2006 into like I
32:47
said earlier, I work, it's my job now.
32:48
So which is which is which is brilliant.
32:52
You know, I'm really grateful that the trustees have put that
32:55
trust in me to go and go and do that and hopefully raise even
33:00
more money and giving more kids days out.
33:02
Right. I'll leave this question with
33:04
you up before we go to a break. But you know, 5-10 years time
33:09
sort of vision, thought process, have to think about that while
33:12
we go to these messages. You're listening to PCR sports.
33:27
Welcome back This is the PCR Sports show here on PCR FM for
33:31
the start of your sporting weekend.
33:34
If you haven't missed any of the show this evening you can't
33:36
listen back to us. So if you go through to our
33:39
website, whichisthepcrfm.co.uk or download the PCR FM app and
33:46
just then hit the listen again button to here our sports show
33:51
from this evening. Our guest tonight is Steve
33:54
Thorpe from the Free Kicks Foundation.
33:57
They are a charity whose aim is to give I'll disadvantaged and
34:01
bereaved children a day out at their favorite football club.
34:04
They've been going for 20 years now.
34:06
Steve. 20 year anniversary. Yeah, hopefully a big, big
34:11
celebration. A big obviously, like we said
34:14
earlier, hitting our two thousandth kick later this
34:18
season and yeah, just going on. I just see the glint in your
34:22
eyes, you know, 20 years later, you know, from half a dozen
34:28
kicks mascots at Peterborough United to now working with
34:33
Manchester City, you know, it's there's a whole breadth of
34:36
football clubs that are involved in between that.
34:39
But those relationships and networks that you've built has
34:42
allowed you to provide a moment of happiness, smiles, joy for
34:48
children and their families. Yeah, yeah.
34:50
And and even like through the Manchester City thing, we've
34:53
we've taken children to women's football as well.
34:56
Now obviously we've never thought of that back in 20 years
34:59
ago, women's football wasn't really, it was, it was obviously
35:03
being played, but it wasn't really as big as it was as it is
35:06
now. So yeah.
35:07
So in US the question only about 5-10 years time and hopefully if
35:13
things go well both Sam and I could be working full time for
35:17
free kicks. And although 10 years time I've
35:20
been nearly 70s so I'll be wanting me to slow.
35:22
Down a bit by then. But yeah, yeah, that's the dream
35:26
in that Sam and I can be working full time for free kicks as our
35:31
job and working with, I think we've done around 70 of the 92
35:37
clubs now and obviously into non league as well with Altringham
35:41
South End and there's both brilliant clubs to work with and
35:47
they all even, you know, down in non league they do so much in
35:51
their communities. Yeah, it's just to grow it and
35:56
to do more, do more. Yeah, that all comes down to the
36:00
relationship, doesn't it? And that awareness, and whether
36:03
it's that awareness by working with Manchester City or Barrow
36:06
or Kilmarnock, wherever that club may be, it's about making
36:10
sure that people are aware of what you're doing, why you're
36:13
doing it and hearing from the children and their families.
36:17
Yeah, and that's the thing. It's getting.
36:19
It's getting. It's not just about raising the
36:22
money, it's about awareness. And the more people hear about
36:25
us, the more chance there is somebody will do a run for us or
36:30
do a parachute dive for us. And, and yeah, it's more more
36:36
about awareness and than anything else at the moment.
36:39
And you never know who you're going to bump into.
36:42
And so he's got a load of money to to give us to, to, yeah, just
36:46
to go to that even, you know, to the next level.
36:49
Yeah. What have you got coming up this
36:51
year then? You mentioned a couple of events
36:54
earlier on in the show, but 2026, yeah, couple of shout outs
36:58
for the events. So we've got the quiz night, May
37:00
the 13th, March, so in March the 13th at the Fleet in Fletton,
37:05
new venue for us. We've got the golf day at Thorny
37:08
on September the 18th. We've got the Posh event coming
37:12
up in May that hopefully word will be come out about that
37:16
soon. Yeah, I'm actually seeing the
37:19
guys at Posh next week to work on some other events, hopefully
37:22
with the football club to again raise more awareness ways more,
37:27
more funds, get more people involved in in doing stuff.
37:31
After I've had a couple of years where I've been injured, I'm
37:35
back on the bike now, so I'm going to do a couple of big bike
37:40
rides hopefully this year. You've just said that live on
37:43
air, so you are doing them now, are you?
37:45
Yeah, I've given myself some accountability, so yeah, I've
37:50
got to do it. But yeah, after not being able
37:53
to cycle much over the last two years due to a couple of
37:56
injuries, I'm back out there and, yeah, wanting to do some
38:00
big rise to, you know, to raise money, you know, to do it, get
38:05
out there and do it myself and show that, you know that.
38:07
You lead from the. Front, Yeah.
38:08
Leading from the front to do it, yeah.
38:10
Yeah, we talked about running activities as well,
38:15
opportunities for people to get involved through those 10 KS
38:18
half marathons. We've got two people taking its
38:20
places in the Brighton Marathon, which is sometime in April.
38:24
I think it's the week before the London I think and we have got 1
38:28
space available in that. The big half in London is always
38:31
a really. I got an e-mail today actually
38:33
saying it was the general places are sold out so you can only get
38:37
places through charities now. We've got 10 places in that and
38:41
I think it's the London landmarks 10 or the London 10K
38:45
yeah, London 10K we've got places in that.
38:48
They're both towards the end of the year.
38:50
So if anybody wants to do those first and raise some money,
38:53
we'll we've got the places and just get in touch through the
38:58
website, through social media and then obviously we've got the
39:01
London 1 next. Year London Marathon in 2027. 27
39:06
that we've got to put a process in place to.
39:10
Get yes, yeah, that'll be covered in place, won't it?
39:13
Yeah, to get the right person to.
39:14
Get that, you go into a ballot every year and you as a smaller
39:19
charity, I think the bigger charities, it's easier for them
39:22
to get places. But you just go into a ballot
39:24
and if you get lucky, you get lucky.
39:26
I think there are 500 places for for charities and we might,
39:29
we're lucky enough to get one for 2027.
39:32
So yeah, that will be another big fundraiser for us.
39:35
Yeah, definitely. And how can people get hold of
39:38
you? What's the best various methods?
39:41
Yeah, through the website, there's contact form on the
39:43
website for and you can choose whether you want to nominate.
39:46
And the web addresses. Which is free kicks,
39:49
foundation.org and then Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,
39:54
all free kicks and you'll find us there.
39:58
Brilliant. 20 years in. Yeah.
40:02
Growing, yeah, but you really do remember your roots, that
40:08
Peterborough United, you know that, that they've, they've
40:10
supported you from that day one. Peterborough is our club and,
40:13
and you know, I've I've been a fan since 1970.
40:16
I've started going 1974. So it's, it's my, my club on
40:21
where we where we started and they, yeah, they've been big
40:24
supporters of us. Obviously the last two years
40:26
we've done the coach trips and the tickets for the Wembley
40:29
finals, which which we've worked really closely with the club on
40:33
and given nearly 200 people the chance to go to Wembley, who
40:37
wouldn't have had the chance to go.
40:38
Yeah. And also that was fan LED as
40:40
well, wasn't it, in terms of the money that was raised?
40:42
Yeah, that started with one fan wanting to give some money to to
40:46
to give somebody who couldn't go to Wembley the chance and we
40:50
built on that. Luckily with Posh were lucky
40:54
enough to get to the final two years in a row and it just gave
40:57
us the opportunity to do that, yeah.
41:00
Wow. Yeah, just taking it all in,
41:05
really. You think, you know, you've been
41:06
on the show what, last couple of years now and just in those, you
41:09
know, 1224 months so much has happened.
41:12
Yeah, it's, it's just the Manchester City thing and, and
41:15
obviously moving into working part time and the amazing amount
41:20
of work that Sam does on on free kicks as well.
41:24
My face is always out there, but Sam's behind me working, working
41:28
hard and getting the kicks arranged and, and and
41:31
everything. So, yeah.
41:32
So it's it's just wanting to do more and and give more kids the
41:37
chance to go to football. Brilliant, Steve, thank you very
41:42
much for coming in once again this evening here on the PCR
41:46
Sports Show. Keep us abreast of obviously the
41:48
quiz night, the golf day, this event that you've mentioned
41:52
that's happening in May. You know, as and when you're
41:54
able to let the the public know more about it, then you know,
41:57
please do let us know and we can shout about it for you as well.
42:04
Thank you. You're welcome.
42:04
That's good to the great work dipam.
42:06
Thank you very much. Pleasure this evening once again
42:08
for the headlines. Hope we got on next week.
42:12
We have What's the question? Oh, it's the Royals.
42:14
That's it. Yep.
42:15
Yep. That's for American.
42:17
Royals just arranged it for. American Football Ladies
42:22
Football Club coming on next Friday evening.
42:26
But thank you for your time tonight.
42:28
Thank you for joining us. Have a wonderful sporting
42:31
weekend and whatever your involvement in sport, whether it
42:35
is volunteering, playing or spectating, we do wish you a
42:39
very successful and enjoyable sporting weekend.