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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
Sport
Gareth Fullerton

Irish League fans calling for weekend games to kick off one minute late

A group of Irish League fans have called for this weekend's games in the NI Football League to kick off one minute later than scheduled.

In a similar campaign to the English FA's 'Heads Up' initiative, the supporters are aiming to raise awareness of mental health.

The idea has been raised by the Irish League Mental Health group (Twitter: @IrishMental), which is fronted by Glentoran supporters Dylan Gray, Ryan Batchelor and Darren Miller.

"We are looking for the games this weekend, or even the following weekend, to kickoff at 3.01pm or 3.02pm," explained Dylan.

"We want to use that extra minute for fans in the stands or terraces to reflect. Ask a friend how they are keeping, and let them know that there is support for them if they need it.

"We saw how it took off in England in the third round of the FA Cup but weren’t sure how it would go down over here.

"A fella Scott Nesbitt then tweeted us a few weeks back about doing it here and it’s something I’ve personally thought about for a considerable amount of time.

"It’s worthwhile, it’s only a minute or two of our Saturday but it could help someone."

Dylan has been in contact with both the NI Football League and Irish FA over the campaign.

"If they support it then it could form another part of our campaign," Dylan added.

"A yearly delay just to take those 60 seconds to check up on a fan/mate you stand beside at the match.

"As with everything we do hope that everyone gets behind us and helps out. It’s a small part of a very large picture.

"It’s helping us get the foundations in place in order to be able to address that bigger picture and make mental health a priority."

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