'Autism Won't Hold Me Back, I Was Proud Of Myself For Going To A Game'

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that's ever happened to me.” – Leicester City fan Sam Green, who has autism, explains how encouragement from his favourite player, Harvey Barnes, helped him to attend his first game for several years.

2022-01-12T18:22:00.000Z

by Admin

Published

12 Jan, 2022

'Autism Won't Hold Me Back, I Was Proud Of Myself For Going To A Game'

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that's ever happened to me.” – Leicester City fan Sam Green, who has autism, explains how encouragement from his favourite player, Harvey Barnes, helped him to attend his first game for several years.

Admin

2022-01-12T18:22:00.000Z

'Autism Won't Hold Me Back, I Was Proud Of Myself For Going To A Game'

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that's ever happened to me.” – Leicester City fan Sam Green, who has autism, explains how encouragement from his favourite player, Harvey Barnes, helped him to attend his first game for several years.

Admin

2022-01-12T18:22:00.000Z

'Autism Won't Hold Me Back, I Was Proud Of Myself For Going To A Game'

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that's ever happened to me.” – Leicester City fan Sam Green, who has autism, explains how encouragement from his favourite player, Harvey Barnes, helped him to attend his first game for several years.

Admin

2022-01-12T18:22:00.000Z

'Autism Won't Hold Me Back, I Was Proud Of Myself For Going To A Game'

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that's ever happened to me.” – Leicester City fan Sam Green, who has autism, explains how encouragement from his favourite player, Harvey Barnes, helped him to attend his first game for several years.

Admin

2022-01-12T18:22:00.000Z

- Foxes fan Sam Green shares his story of living with autism- He attended his first LCFC game for a number of years against Newcastle before Christmas - The youngster received a video message from Harvey Barnes and a pair of signed match-worn boots- Autism Packs are available free of charge on matchdays at King Power Stadium

The 13-year-old, who has been a Foxes fan his entire life, has struggled to watch his beloved team at King Power Stadium for a number of seasons due to his diagnosis of autism.

Sensitivity to loud noises and anxiety in busy places – two common difficulties that people living with autism experience – have held Sam back, however a special video message from Barnes spurred the youngster on to take a game in on Filbert Way.

He attended Leicester’s 4-0 win over Newcastle United on 12 December, and following the game, received a pair of signed match-worn boots from City’s No.7.

Alongside his mother and father, Ruth and Jason, Sam is grateful for the Club’s support and hopes his story can inspire other supporters with autism to feel comfortable to attend games at King Power Stadium.

He said: “It made me feel really good to be able to watch a game in person because it has been a very long time since I last attended one.

“It gave me a nice feeling inside being there because we’d tried going a few times before lockdown but when I got to the stadium things got too much for me and we had to leave.

“It really helped me this time that we were there early so I could get used to the surroundings with my dad.

“We walked around the stadium a few times, watched the players arriving in their cars and then when they opened the turnstiles, we went straight to our seats, so we knew where we were sitting.

“I was a little bit nervous before the start of the game when the noise started to get louder, but I used some breathing techniques to calm me down and got used to the atmosphere as the game went on, which was good.”

Sam was diagnosed with autism when he was nine years old and developed severe anxiety, which thwarted his efforts in attending games.

Ruth said: “We tried to get to a couple of games during the 2018/19 season and got to the stadium on both occasions, but unfortunately Sam was just overwhelmed with everything and didn’t feel like he could go in because he was just too anxious.

“I contacted the Club the day after this and spoke to Anna (Disability Liaison Officer) and Jim (Supporter Relations & Accessibility Manager).

“They arranged for Sam to visit the stadium on a non-matchday so he could get a feel of the environment, so we went along, and they showed us around so that he could familiarise himself with the place – he even got to sit in the manager’s seat!

“We hoped this would help him, so we tried going to the game against Newcastle in 2019/20, but again things were just too much for him, which was such a shame as I knew how much he wanted to go in.

“Anna and Jim came to meet us in the car that day to try and help Sam in, but the noises and the crowds meant he wasn’t comfortable.”

Sam explains how Harvey’s encouraging comments helped him to break down his barriers and said he was overjoyed to receive his boots.

“The message from Harvey made me try even harder to get to a game because he’s my favourite player and I didn’t expect anything like that to happen. It made me feel more confident in myself to give it a try.

“Autism won’t hold me back now and I was proud of myself for going to a game because I had a lot of fun, and it was great to see Leicester score four goals.

“It made me feel amazing when I received Harvey’s boots, it’s the best thing that has ever happened to me.

“I’m going to get a case for them and put them in my bedroom. They’ll definitely take pride of place in the house.”

He now hopes to be able to take in more games with his dad in the future and to help raise awareness for supporters living with autism.

Jason said: “It’s really important for people living with autism to acclimatise themselves with the environment they’re going into, be that football or anything else.

“It was great for us to be able to go into the stadium as soon as it opened because what we’ve done wrong in the past is that we’ve tried to get there too late, and it’s been too overwhelming for Sam.

“This time though we allowed the atmosphere to build which helped Sam a lot as it was just a gradual trickle into the ground. Having the ability to go in before the crowds start arriving is important.

“Other little practical things that could be considered are for people living with autism to sit at the end of rows, so if they need to go out or leave because it’s too noisy or too stressful for them, then they can do that without disturbing other people if they were sat in the middle of a row, for example.

“A sensory room would also be amazing because again it would allow people who are overwhelmed a space to go to for a little bit of peace and quiet.

“But generally, it’s just about awareness and the fact some people have these needs. Autism is a hidden disability and sometimes the needs are not as obvious as others.

“Leicester City have been amazing in their support of Sam and us as a family and we’re so thankful to everybody.”

Please click HERE for more information about the work the Football Club does to help supporters with disabilities.

Additionally, Autism Packs, which include ear defenders and sensory tangles, are available on matchdays for people living with autism, their families and carers.

To find out more about the Autism Packs or if you are interested in receiving one, please email anna.dickman@lcfc.co.uk for further details.

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