In Leeds We Trust: Celebrating the life of the great Gary Speed

In this week’s column, the Board of the Leeds United Supporters’ Trust on Kalvin’s continuing England adventure and plans are announced to celebrate the life of the much missed Gary Speed as the 10th anniversary of his death nears.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the death of the much loved Gary Speed. Picture: Mike Hewitt/Allsport/Getty ImagesThis year marks the 10th anniversary of the death of the much loved Gary Speed. Picture: Mike Hewitt/Allsport/Getty Images
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the death of the much loved Gary Speed. Picture: Mike Hewitt/Allsport/Getty Images

The international break always leaves a feeling of dissatisfaction as the normal rhythms of club football are broken up. This time however was more entertaining than most in recent history for

Leeds fans, as we got to watch our very own Kalvin Phillips pick up more minutes than any other outfield player as part of Gareth Southgate’s squad as part of three back-to-back wins for England.

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It was widely reported that Kalvin wasn’t far from being joined on international duty by two of his teammates at club level as both Patrick Bamford and Luke Ayling were apparently in Southgate’s thoughts.

Bamford especially was unfortunate to miss out, but for players who were in the Championship last year to be so close to making their international debuts is a fantastic sign of the progress made in our first year back in the top flight.

In comparison to the high intensity style of football we’re spoiled with under Bielsa, England’s matches may not have been the most thrilling but it was certainly satisfying to see the faith that Southgate clearly has in Phillips.

Elsewhere, Alioski played his role in a shock win over Germany for North Macedonia while Stuart Dallas and Diego Llorente picked up caps for Northern Ireland and Spain.

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We at the Trust would also like to take this opportunity to announce that as this year will mark the 10th anniversary of the death of Gary Speed, there will be a number of events over the coming months to celebrate the impact he had on both the club and the fans.

This will begin in the coming week with a new mural, commissioned in partnership with business owner Ross Horsman, based in Bramley at Showoff Design and Display.

Ross is a lifelong Leeds fan and a great admirer of Gary Speed, and as such was keen to work with the Trust, commissioning a local tribute to Gary which will serve both as a testament to his iconic status amongst Leeds fans as well as a way of raising awareness of male suicide and the great number of support groups that are available for this cause.

One such group that the Trust have been working closely with for some time now is Andy’s Man Club, who do excellent work to create an environment where men can feel comfortable openly discussing their mental health.

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We are proud to be supporting such an important and impactful cause and look forward to continuing our partnership.

Make sure to look out for this column next week to see the finished mural design, and keep an eye out for the other work that will be done to mark the 10th anniversary of Gary’s passing this year.

Adding your own voice to the Trust’s work is easy.

Visit our new website at www.lufctrust.com and you can become a member for just £10 per year.

Marching on together.

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