By Callum Nixon
A group of sports journalism students at the University of South Wales have been highlighting ‘bounce backs’ within the sporting world on this years ‘Time to Talk Day’.
Students, Haydn Evans, Adam Evans, Barbora Safarov, Dafydd Jones, Chris Stonadge, Calvin Okeke, Nick Guildford, Alex Wallace and Adam Clearly worked together to produce an important video package discussing various ‘bounce backs’ inviting guests on to discuss their own ‘bounce backs’ and how they have affected their lives for the better.
The students are trying to raise awareness on this years ‘Time to Talk Day’ and highlight the importance of discussing the mental health of others during these testing times for all of us.
Second year student, Haydn Evans explained the importance of ‘Time to Talk Day’ in the current climate we are living in.
“It’s obviously a very important thing and we’re quite lucky now that people’s mental health is cared about a lot these days. It’s been a terrible year for everyone especially those who are isolated or alone so it’s all about starting a conversation and letting them know there’s always someone to talk to. We chose the topic of ‘bounce backs’ to get away from all the doom and gloom and show positivity and what people can overcome.”
The students started their interviews Dafydd Jones speaking with Haverfordwest manager, Wayne Jones who also works for the NHS as a mental health worker focusing their conversation on how his job in the National Health Service can be beneficial for the players and staff under his leadership at Haverfordwest.
Wayne’s role as a community mental health support worker has him supporting qualified nurses alongside a social team in the form of Carmarthenshire county council. Wayne and this social support team work together to form the community mental health support team in his local area. Wayne’s main responsibilities are to support clients with mental health problems as well as in the community. Wayne is also responsible for follow up care when people are discharged from the hospital, helping clients settle back into their communities.
When asked whether his role as a mental health support worker has helped him with his first team manager responsibilities at Haverfordwest and helping players and staff deal with their mental health as well as keeping fit during the newest of government restrictions, Wayne had this to say,
“Yeah definitely. It’s testing times for all of us as we are all living with this at the moment. Ensuring the safety of everyone is paramount but doing it in a dignified way. Taking into consideration what we do on a day to day work basis, we take that into football as well. The risks are still exactly the same. We’re lucky at Haverfordwest as we have a very good medical team there and we all chip in with everything. As we have a lot of players coming from different places we don’t think it’s safe for us to be together and train as a group as of yet. It’s very testing for us all, but it is something that we appear to be coping with.”
Wayne went on in the interview to discuss the effects of footballing decisions on players across all skill levels. He explained how being released by clubs alongside injuries can have a massive effect on a players mental health.
“It all has a psychological effect on a players. But, as a team I believe we (Haverfordwest) tend to deal with that really well.”
After speaking with Wayne, first year student Dafydd Jones said that one of the main things he had learned from speaking with him was that the support for people is there and on offer for people to take during these difficult times.
Following on from their interview with Wayne Jones. Second year student, Adam Cleary spoke with WalesOnline rugby correspondent Simon Thomas. In the past, Simon had battled with cancer in 2018 where his physical health would have obviously been affected first. However as Adam explains in his interview once the ‘dust had settled’ Simon’s mental health would have been a major concern for both himself and his loved ones.
Was a pleasure speaking to @simonrug about his battle with cancer and how he overcame it for @SportsJournoUSW #TimeToTalkDay
Full video to be released later #TimeToTalkUSW pic.twitter.com/BUEhDECXQ0
— Adam Cleary (@AdamCleary7) February 4, 2021
Simon explained how he first felt sorry for the consultant who had to deliver him the news of his condition,
“My abiding memory was actually feeling sorry for the consultant who was telling me. I got the impression it was one of the first (cancer diagnosis) he had to do and he seemed very nervous. I was already completely resigned to it because I’ve got a family history of the same form of cancer, my brother sadly passed away with it so I knew all the symptoms.”
Simon, who went public with his condition, received hundreds of messages from well wishers on social media when people eventually found out about his condition, even receiving a signed jersey from the Welsh Rugby Union.
“I never wanted to go public with it for sympathy or profile. I only really did it because I wanted to say a thank you to the medical staff who had been so fantastic. You expect the medical care, but it’s the other parts that really strike you, such as the professionalism in terms of attitude and the way in which you are going through a difficult time and they treat you with such dignity. They are so supportive, so encouraging, so positive and it really did make me appreciate and value just what we have in terms of the NHS and the fantastic people who work in it. Without getting too dramatic about it they saved my life.”
When asked how all the messages from well wishers boosted his mental health in a dark and difficult time for himself. Simon says that it had a huge boost for himself.
“I will always be so grateful. Particularly those players of the (Welsh national team) for seeking me out to send me messages. I always recall when Wales won the Grand Slam in 2019, I was standing outside the dressing room area and George North and Leigh Halfpenny made a point of coming over and said they were glad to see me and gave me their best wishes and you realise that these a very very decent people. I found it quite humbling that in their moment of greatest triumph they thought of another.”
When Simon was given the all clear from the doctor, completing his ‘bounce back’. Simon still remained grounded and kept his thoughts in check.
“You’re never really given the all clear as there is always a chance of it coming back. So you just go for your checks each year and I work on the basis of no news is good news! I remember going in for the ‘big’ post chemotherapy scan results and everything was going through my head, whether it was going to be good news or bad news. When the doctor told me I could just go home I was like ‘what?’. The more matter of fact they are about it the better I think!”
You are able to watch both interviews in full on the ExpoSport YouTube channel. You will also be able to find the two other videos produced by sports journalism students where they as well discuss other issues and matters surrounding mental health on this years “Time to Talk Day’.