Bury Town striker Ollie Hughes is running a marathon to pay for season tickets for supporters next season when the coronavirus crisis is hopefully over.
The former Walsham-Le-Willows, Leiston and AFC Sudbury frontman is paying fans back for honouring him again this season with the BetVictor Isthmian League club's ‘Supporters Player of the Year' award.
Pictured in action, he is starting and finishing his marathon from Ram Meadow in June. Hughes is vowing to run on his own if social distancing restrictions remain in force after already collecting £775 toward the tickets, as well as new flags and drums for Town's ‘Ultras' and other committed supporters.
Hughes, the head of PE at Mildenhall College Academy, is certainly a favourite with supporters at his hometown club. Since signing for the Blues four years ago after working for a year abroad, he's won the fans' accolade for the last three seasons in a row.
NEWS: Bury Town striker Ollie Hughes is running a Marathon in June 2020 to raise money to buy Season Tickets for the Bury Town Ultras and is looking for donations via his Just Giving page:https://t.co/8LyyB4TKG7 pic.twitter.com/7nZMNCdIis
— Bury Town FC ?? (@BuryTownFC) March 30, 2020
The frontman told the club's website: “I will be running my first marathon on Saturday 6 June, starting and finishing at Ram Meadow. I will enlist the help of some other Bury Town first team players, if allowed, to accompany me around the 26.2 mile course of the town and surrounding areas.
“I am committing to 12 weeks of training where I will clock up over 400 miles in preparation for this run! Initially, fundraising sought to cover the costs of season tickets for the 14 members of the Bury Town Ultras.
“These boys give superb vocal backing to Bury Town FC and we want to thank them for their continued support! As of 31/03/20, thanks to your donations, we have almost hit this target!
“We will use the additional funds to reward other worthy Bury Town fans with complimentary tickets, club shop vouchers, etc. To nominate a fan, contact @ollyhughes87 on Twitter.”
For more information and to visit the player's JustGiving page click here.
So that's it for this season. It's been a real pleasure photographing @BuryTownFC for my first (nearly) season. I sincerely hope this group of lads stay together ready for the next. A strong group that dealt with a horrific injury list and maintained the highest of standards ???? pic.twitter.com/eVapgI5XHH
— Neil Dady (@NDsport79) March 26, 2020
Make sure you get your copy of The Non-League Paper this week for all the latest news in one place on the impact of the coronavirus crisis on society and football's fightback.
In shops on Sundays and Mondays, it's always available as a pound-busting digital edition and full replica of the printed paper. Save cash on single issues, even more on longer deals and the pages still rustle too!
Images courtesy of Neil Dady & @ollyhughes87/Twitter
