- 3 months ago
Join Finn Macdiarmid with a roundup of Kent's sporting action.
On today's episode we meet Andy Baines-Vosper, a Gravesend runner who carries a weighted bag to represent the weight of life, and how it's talking to others and sharing that weight that makes the most difference.
On today's episode we meet Andy Baines-Vosper, a Gravesend runner who carries a weighted bag to represent the weight of life, and how it's talking to others and sharing that weight that makes the most difference.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Hello and welcome along to Invicta Sport, the only show on your TV dedicated to wrapping
00:19up all of Kent's sporting action. I'm Finn McDermott and here's what you can expect
00:24on Monday 8th September. Kent's comebacks, we look at the county's football teams coming
00:30back from losing positions. Sharing the weight, Gravesend runner prepares for a 10k weighted
00:40race to fundraise for the Samaritans charity. And midlife movers, Kent Darts Group practice
00:49their moves ahead of the Baton of Hope tour. But first, a round-up of the headlines and
00:55to start us off, Gillingham have kept their unbeaten run alive, now at 19 games after
01:00a 2-all draw away to rivals Bromley. The match saw the Gilles 2-0 down in the first half but
01:05after a goal in the second and a 98th minute equaliser, the side are rapidly approaching
01:10the club's longest unbeaten run of 20 league games, achieved in the 1973-74 season. On
01:17the match, Ironsworth said the team needed to sort the first 20 minutes of playout before
01:21their fixture against Notts County. We heard a bit more from the manager just after the
01:25match. I think there was an element of us getting sucked into a battle and against this
01:30team, if you battle, you're going to lose because they are the best battlers in the division,
01:34I'm telling you now. So you have to play a bit of gale, a bit of flair. I said the switch
01:38of play would work, you know, trying to get our wing backs in in the second half and I think
01:41we scored from a move down there outside. We get a throwing because we switched the player well,
01:46and then the throwing gets headed in, you know, and then even the penalty, you know,
01:50it's almost a switch. It is a long ball, but, you know, I'm saying to him that can we switch
01:55the play? Can we get the ball down, calm the ball down a little bit? Because it was, I felt
01:58sorry for the ball at times, you know, but it was a battle and if you come to battle with
02:03Bromley, I tell you nine out of ten times you'll lose. They're very good at that. They're
02:07really good at that and fair play to them. But my boys can play a little bit. We've got a bit
02:13of the pace in the team and I think that caused a few problems for their defence. But, listen,
02:18it's Bromley, you know, they've done wonders on the budget they've got and what the club
02:21they are. You've got to say well done. We'll be ready for them back at Priestfield, but,
02:27you know, I'm glad it's not next week because that was a physical game today.
02:32Now to cricket and it was an extremely tense day for the county's sides as Sandwich Town now
02:37face relegation from the Premier Division. It all comes after a five-wicket loss at Lordswood,
02:44which, combined with Minster picking up seven points, leave them second from the bottom in
02:48the table after the last weekend of the season. Well, it looks like Gravesend and Beckenham will
02:52also look set to take their spots in the top flight after a first and second place in Division
02:56One. Elsewhere, champions Tunbridge Wells lost their final match of the season to St Lawrence and
03:02Highland Court. And as for your rugby news, the Tunbridge Juddians marked their return to the
03:07National League First Division with a 46-14 win at Leicester Lions. It was their first visit to the
03:13Lions after their fixture back in 2020 was cancelled due to the Covid pandemic and they came prepared.
03:19The game started out as a seesaw match with both sides converting early, but the Juddians picked their
03:24way through the defence and didn't slow, with them leading 14-7 within 26 minutes. Though the Lions did
03:30convert, it wasn't enough, with the Judds finding space to exploit on the flanks to end the game with
03:34a 22-point lead. And for some more interesting news now, Canterbury's Ruben Harris claimed his
03:41second junior wheelchair tennis title at the Grand Slam tournament with his doubles partner Maximilien
03:46Tosha at the US Open. Harris and Tosha defeated Brazil's Luis Calixto and Thomas Magetic of the USA
03:546-3 to add to the junior boys wheelchair doubles title they won at the French Open in 2024.
04:00Harris said he's still trying to soak it all in and said we just played pretty smart the whole
04:04match and took our opportunities. I'm definitely happy with how I've controlled myself mentally
04:08through all the matches and controlled the nerves through the final.
04:13Now let's take a look back at this weekend's football results. A lot of draws across the
04:17pyramid. Jill's fans, I'm looking at you, but first let's take a trip down to the Princes Park Stadium
04:21in Dartford. Welcome to this week's football roundup and it's a scrappy match early here in the season.
04:27Both sides are craving a win at Princes Park Stadium, with the Darts only having one to their name
04:32and Canvi-Irland having five losses in their five games this season. The match kicks off and it is
04:38a disastrous start for AD Penix's side when a failed clearance of Elliot Ronto's strike lets Charlie
04:44Stimson fire in a rebound for an early 1-0 lead. And not even a minute later and the hungry girls swoop in
04:51and steal another goal like Dartford are a kid on the beach that's forgotten all about their food.
04:56The Darts do manage to make a couple of shots of their own and hold out before the half-time break.
05:02And when they come back they look ready to get back into the game and even though their opponents
05:06are called the gulls, the Darts can fly through the skies too with George Whitefield's header putting
05:11them back in it. And this is a blink and you'll miss it game with Oli Box driving the ball into the
05:17bottom corner only two minutes later to equalise the game. The draw means Dartford stay unbeaten at
05:23home while Canvi break their loss streak. Well, Dartford fans will be breathing a sigh of relief
05:29after that 2-2 draw and the same can be said to Ramsgate who travelled to Billericay to earn the same
05:34result. While Folkestone and Chatham manage to overpower Whitehawk and Wingate for some strong results
05:39as Kent goes unbeaten in the Itzmian Premier this week. Chatham will head to Ashford United at the weekend
05:45in the FA Cup second qualifying round and Folkestone will host a Kent Derby with the Stones while Ramsgate
05:51and Dartford are out of the cup, the former facing Potters Bar Town at the weekend and the latter
05:55having their league fixture with Burgess Hilltown postponed. And all the way back up to League Two
06:01and Jills fans might feel like they've gotten away by the seat of their blue shorts after keeping the
06:05Jills unbeaten run against local rivals Bromley thanks to a 56th-minute strike by Andrews and a 98th-minute
06:12equaliser from the spot. They'll face off with Notts County who are hanging around the mid table
06:18and they hope to keep pace with other table toppers like Swindon Town and Walsall.
06:23Down in the National League South Ebbsfleet drew at home to Hornchurch, not a bad result against the
06:28league leaders. Waldova beat Farnborough on the road, Maidstone weren't as lucky against Horsham
06:33and Tunbridge earned themselves a deserved three points against Salisbury. Coming up Ebbsfleet face off
06:38against Ashford Town in the FA Cup second qualifying round, Waldova will head to Farnborough hoping for
06:43a repeat of last week's result. Maidstone will head to Folkestone and Tunbridge will be the only
06:48National League Southside to head out of Kent to Staining Town FC in West Sussex.
06:53That's all for this week's Football Roundup.
06:58Next, while running a marathon in 2024, Andy Baines-Vosper from Gravesend decided to carry
07:03a 24.7kg bag on his shoulders that represented the weight of life that every person carries,
07:10all to raise money for the Samaritans. Since then, Share the Weight has become a movement within
07:14the running community, with more than 1,700 runners also running with this weighted bag
07:19to raise awareness and help share Andy's message. Now, he's preparing for the brand new Sorkenny run
07:24in Shoreditch later this month, and to tell us all about it and more about Share the Weight,
07:28he joins us now. Thank you so much for joining us, Andy. How are you doing today?
07:32I'm very well, thank you.
07:34Good to hear, good to hear.
07:37First of all, let's just start from the beginning. Where did this journey really begin for you?
07:42That's a very good question. It began, I mean, it began a long, long time ago. So basically,
07:52the bag, as you said, it represents the weight of life that we all carry on our shoulders. And for me,
07:57it represents various different things that I've carried in the past. And in 2024, I had the
08:05opportunity to run London Marathon for Samaritans, which is a charity very, very close to my heart.
08:11And I decided to make it a little bit harder. And I would run with this 24.7 kilogram bag
08:21to represent that weight of life and ultimately the weight of suicidal thoughts and just, you know,
08:27whatever it represents to each individual. And wanted to do it to raise additional money and to
08:32really bring to life what Samaritans do in helping people with that burden that they're carrying.
08:36And it was supposed to be a one and done thing. And the idea was that I'd run the marathon and never
08:43pick the bag up again. And unfortunately, or fortunately, really, I had the most amazing
08:50conversation with the security guard on the day of the marathon where he wanted to see how heavy
08:56my bag was and then started to really open up and tell me what had been going on for him and
09:01shed his weight, metaphorical weight. And from that conversation of two men standing in a field
09:07full of 1000 people opening up about, you know, life and the things that were weighing us down.
09:13But what more can I do with my bag of worries? So since then, I've been running everywhere,
09:20going to various different running clubs, done another marathon and all events in between
09:24and with my bag of worries and asking for help. So the whole idea behind it is that, you know,
09:30I can't carry it on my own a bit like life. And I need help to share the weight on my shoulders.
09:35And it's all around asking for help and showing that it's not weak and we're not a burden.
09:40And there's so many incredible people out there ready to step in and help when you need it.
09:44That's amazing. And I'm sure you get this question a lot, but why 24.7 kilograms specifically?
09:50There's two reasons. One is that when I did it, it was to raise awareness. And as I still do for
09:58Samaritans and they were open 24 seven for anybody struggling with anything. And especially for those
10:05in crisis and for those that are really struggling with the weight of suicidal thoughts. And also,
10:10it represents the weight that we carry around with us 24 hours a day, seven days of the week as well.
10:16So yeah, a couple of meanings. And I find it's a really good conversation starter as well.
10:20I see. And we can see some pictures of your social media now. Tell us,
10:24what is it like having these conversations with people on these runs and getting them to share
10:28the way? Obviously, you mentioned that the symbolic meaning,
10:31but do you find people open up to you and tell you their own stories?
10:36I'll be honest, it's been one of the most unexpected and amazing kind of journeys that are,
10:43you know, I never planned any of this. This was all came out of that one conversation,
10:46really. And since then, not only have, you know, over 1700 people now help share the weight
10:53physically. But they've also helped share my weight metaphorically, and they've also shared theirs. And
11:00I've had some of the most incredible, open, honest, heartwarming, heartbreaking conversations,
11:07some of which I'll never, ever forget. And it's, I'm truly grateful for people,
11:13you know, to feel comfortable enough to talk, because this is what this whole thing is about.
11:17You know, yes, I try and use social media for good and sort of spread that message. But ultimately,
11:23this is about showing that it's okay to ask for help and that life is too heavy. And yeah,
11:29I've had some incredible conversations and met the most amazing people, all strangers at the time,
11:37who have shared some of their, you know, some of their weight with me.
11:41Sorry to cut you off, Andy, we are running out of time. But we will talk to you just after this very
11:47short break. And if you feel affected by anything you've heard, don't forget, you can always talk to
11:51the Samaritans 24 seven on 116 123. See you just after this break.
12:21I'll see you just after this break.
12:51Bye.
13:21Bye.
13:51Bye.
14:21Bye.
14:51Bye.
15:10Hello, and welcome back to Invictus Sport live on KMTV. Now we are still joined by Andy Baines-Vosper from
15:17Share the Weight. Andy, thanks for staying with us. Now, talk to us a bit about
15:21the Sorkenny run in Shoreditch. Where did that really start? How long has that been in the works?
15:27So, I think it's been in the works for a while and it's going to be the first one in Shoreditch and
15:32very, very much looking forward to it. I think with, you know, events like this, it's so important.
15:40Community is so important for our wellbeing, for our mental health and just, you know, as humans.
15:47And something like this is amazing for bringing the community together from, you know, all walks of life.
15:54So, in the name of sort of physical activity, running, open to everybody, all abilities. And yeah,
16:04it's looking like it's going to be a fantastic event in a fantastic location as well.
16:09Amazing. We can see some of the runs and some of the people that have been sharing that weight with
16:13you. I'm aware that you did some volunteering work for quite a few years with the Samaritans.
16:18How did that experience really shape the way you approach things with Share the Weight?
16:22I think it's something that I still do at the moment and it really, I think for me, it's the power of
16:31listening. It's the power of how important listening is that helps people take that weight off.
16:40You know, a lot of what I do involves listening to people and it's something which I think we don't
16:46give enough credit to is how important it is to really listen to someone when they're struggling,
16:52to give them that time, that space, that, you know, that moment to offload whatever it is they're
16:59carrying. And, you know, one of the things I've learned through being a Samaritans volunteer and
17:04doing what I do with Share the Weight is that I can't necessarily help people. I can't fix the things
17:09that are going on in life. You know, very few of us can with each other, but what we can do,
17:13which is so much more powerful than that, is listen, is be there for that person in that
17:18moment and give that person the time and space that they need. And it's something that I try and
17:22bring with me with Share the Weight and try and give people that space if they want to share their
17:28weight and to know that they can and that, you know, someone's truly giving them that attention.
17:34Absolutely. And I mean, I'm sure many of our viewers will be thinking when they're seeing these
17:39pictures of you and other people running with this weight, how hard is it to carry and to run with?
17:43Did you have to do any sort of specialist training for any of that?
17:48I probably should do more, but I don't. So a lot of the training I do just involves
17:53running with it. So for example, when I'm training for the marathon, I just do a normal marathon plan,
17:57but carrying my bag. So all of the runs, I'm carrying it everywhere. And it's hard, it's uncomfortable,
18:06it can be really, really difficult. And there's a lot of times I wake up and I just don't want to do it.
18:10But for me, that is exactly what the whole point of this is. That's the same with the weight of life.
18:15It is heavy, it is hard, it is uncomfortable. And sometimes we wake up and don't think we want to
18:20keep going and don't want to do it anymore. And I think that, you know, I've got used to it over
18:25time. I've been carrying it for so long now. And again, very similar to life. I think a lot of us
18:31carry things on our shoulders and we don't realise how heavy it's become because we get used to it and we
18:35keep going and it gets heavier and heavier. And for me, that bag is exactly the same. I might have
18:40got used to carrying it, but when people take it, when people share that weight, it's amazing.
18:46And it makes me feel lighter and it makes others, when they give it back to me, feel so much lighter.
18:51Again, you know, just like all the things that we carry in life.
18:54Absolutely. And talk to us a bit about the future of Share the Weight. Obviously,
18:59we know about the ESO. Can you run the 10K? But beyond that, what else can we expect?
19:05Good question. I kind of feel like I'm making it up as I go along at the moment. As I say,
19:09it's very unexpected. And what I've loved about this whole journey is that first,
19:14it's not enough with me reaching out for people to help share the weight. And now
19:18people are reaching out to me and are offering to help, to help share that weight, to take it from me.
19:24I've got some really exciting opportunities, run clubs coming up, because again, I think there's a
19:29common misconception that perhaps runners, you know, if we're out running, we've got it together.
19:34But the actual truth is that actually, sometimes we run because of our mental health and because
19:40we need to do something as an outlet. So I've got some fantastic opportunities with some run
19:44clubs coming up. I've got three marathons in April that I'll be doing with my bag, Brighton,
19:50Manchester and London, and loads in between. And as I say, it's all happening a bit, you know,
19:58last minute, it's, yeah, I'm not really quite sure what's coming up. But there is lots. And I sort
20:04of try and not turn down the offer of help. So when people reach out and offer to share the weight,
20:08I try and take it up and go where I can and share the weight and, yeah, pass the message.
20:15Amazing. I'm afraid that is all the time we have, Andy. But thank you so much for joining us
20:19and telling us about your experience and about Share the Way.
20:26Like I mentioned, you can always talk to Samaritans 24-7 on 116 123.
20:33Now, it's time to also remind you, you can keep up to date with all the latest sports news,
20:38interviews and features from here on Invicta Sport. That's by heading over to our website,
20:42cametv.co.uk. There you can see videos like this one. What about the Medway Dragons league final
20:48against the Elmbridge Eagles? It's the half-time break at the finals of the London
20:53and Eastmen's Premier Division. And even though they've gone almost unbeaten this season,
20:57the Medway Dragons are behind to Elmbridge Eagles by 18 points. And if they don't win here,
21:03their hopes for getting to the Challenge Cup would be over. Try after try has come in,
21:08and all hope seems lost. But the Dragons love nothing if not a comeback.
21:20As soon as the break is over, the Dragons start scoring and they just don't stop,
21:23with Mason O'Neill scoring four by himself.
21:26I think it's from the half-time talk, really. We've got a bit of an earful. I agree with this,
21:32and from what the rest of the boys said, it wasn't our best start. And if, in fact,
21:35I think it was the worst start. So we got an earful, and I think a couple of subs impacted
21:40how the game went, and obviously, come away with a result. Our emotions don't sum up, really.
21:44We've been working all year to lead to this point. The game started how we didn't want it to start,
21:50but I think the boys managed to turn it around pretty quick and come away with a result.
21:54The rain started to come down, and with it, the Dragons managed to clinch the win, 36-18.
21:59Yeah, we just went back to the basics. Our coach, Martin, came and spoke to us and just said,
22:04we've got to play simple, get back to some one-up rugby league. And if we start doing that,
22:11because of the size of the boys that we've got, and the weight of the boys that we've got coming
22:14on to play, we knew we'd be able to get the better of them, because we've done that at their place
22:18earlier in the season, and we did that when they visited us earlier in the season as well.
22:23So we just knew we've been in this situation before. We know that we can pull it back,
22:29and that's what we ended up doing, and what a second half it was.
22:32The Eagles had a strong start, but suffered injuries in the first half,
22:36while the Dragons conserved their energy.
22:38I think it was a few factors. It weren't just one. I think we got a bit complacent.
22:46Obviously, the first try from Medway was a great try, well worked, and we just didn't stop their
22:50momentum. And everyone knows, once Medway built that momentum, you're never going to stop it.
22:56They're coming downhill, wind's behind them, obviously it's their home ground, and yeah,
23:01once they had that momentum, the fans were behind them, the fans were great,
23:05and we just, we didn't stop it, and they just kept building and building and building.
23:08And once the clouds darkened, the heavens opened, the rain came pouring down,
23:12the Dragons proved, after four years of waiting, why they are the kings of the southeastern skies.
23:17If the Dragons win their next tournament match, they'll get through to the first round of the
23:21Challenge Cup, but first, they'll have to survive a weekend of celebrations.
23:25Finn McDermid for KMTV in Medway.
23:28Well done again for that victory there, Dragons. Now, as the day nears for when the Baton of Hope
23:35makes its first tour throughout Kent and Medway, many charities, communities and individuals are
23:40preparing to attend the day and share their story and support those who have been affected by suicide.
23:45But for one dance group, they're practicing their moves for their performance at the finale of Hope.
23:50Daisy Page went down to their dance class to find out what this day means to them.
23:54Please be advised, this report contains content which some may find distressing.
23:57Flooding to the dance floor to groove the night away, the midlife movers are
24:13practicing their next steps for their next stage. The group originally started in 2022 as a dance
24:19class for people over the age of 40 years old and has grown to all across East Kent and has since
24:25become much more than choreography but community. Groups of people have met and made friends and they
24:31go out and we appear to be supporting many, many issues because I know that the upper age bracket are
24:40very, very complex and that can be anything from feeling lonely because they've lost loved ones,
24:50they're grieving, there's mental health issues, there's sometimes grave illnesses and of course the
24:56mental health umbrella is huge. It's connecting people and giving a lot of people a purpose.
25:06But their latest dance aims to raise awareness of suicide prevention. Perfecting their routine
25:13before performing at Dreamland this September where they'll be performing at the Evening of Hope
25:18which will mark the end to the event of the Battle of Hope's first ever visit to Kent and Medway.
25:23Making its way from Medway through Maystone and Canterbury before finishing the day at Margate,
25:28it will be carried by bearers who all have their own personal stories.
25:33I mean this means a lot to me because in the late 60s I lost my dad to suicide and it was in the 60s
25:41it was a taboo subject, couldn't talk about it. Yeah and it's very dear to my heart so I'll be doing this
25:50one for my dad. The baton is a physical symbol of the work the charity is doing to boost conversations
25:56around mental health and saving lives. But in the lead up to the 22nd of September,
26:01the midlife movers will keep practicing their steps ahead of the day.
26:09Daisy Page for KMTV in Sandwich. If you've been affected by the issues raised in this report,
26:16the Samaritans can be reached on 116 123.
26:24And it looks like that's full time on today's episode of Invictus Sport but if you want more
26:29from KMTV you can head over to our website kmtv.co.uk where all of our special shows are available to
26:35watch back on demand. Don't forget you can also follow us on our social media at KMTV underscore Kent
26:41or keep up with the latest on Invictus Sport by following us on the website. Thank you so much
26:46for watching. We'll see you very soon. Good night.
Be the first to comment