Legends Live looming as Stag stars return for charity

Richie Barker, Adam Murray and Paul Cox make up the hat-trick of legends joining the supporters-led ‘Legends Live’ event, which will act as a fundraiser for the charity.

Taking place on Friday, 27th July (8pm) at The Sandy Pate Sports Bar, the trio will chat to Mansfield Matters’ Craig Priest, recalling the drama, the heartache and the glory from their time at the Stags.

Supporters of all ages are welcome to come along to the family-friendly evening to hear first-hand for the first time about each of the panel’s experiences – including Richie Barker’s controversial exit from the club, Adam Murray’s varied journey from young loanee to manager, and how Paul Cox steered the Stags back into the Football League.

It will be free entry on the night, with funds being raised by way of a prize raffle and quiz.

Event host Craig Priest said: “Alzheimer’s is a truly awful thing to live with.

“As football fans we’ve had so many memories created through following the Stags, I couldn’t imagine waking up one day and having no recollection of all of the adventures – but that’s dementia, it can happen to anyone at any time.

“Kevin Bird was a hero for generations of Stags fans and is living with dementia, potentially caused by heading the old-style football which, when you strip it back means, when he was creating so many memories for us fans, he was putting his future health at risk without knowing it.

“The whole idea of this evening is to create some more great memories for supporters and Richie , Paul and Adam will have lots of stories to share.

“I thank them for their involvement and really encourage everyone to come along, pack the bar out and get involved for a great cause.”

The evening will include a general knowledge prize quiz and mega raffle with prizes including a signed shirt, as well as the stories from Barker, Murray and Cox, plus on-stage entertainment and a disco.

Priest added: “The club have been fantastic in helping us to host this event, we’ve had one of the best summers I can remember as a country.

“It would be really nice to round it off with this event as David Flitcroft looks to deliver some more memories to today’s generation by way of promotion to League One.

There are 14,000 people across Nottinghamshire with dementia, including about 1,300 in Mansfield alone, and it is set to be the 21st century’s biggest killer, with someone developing it every three minutes.