On Sunday, we hosted the Mark Crisp Charity Match, in honour of the Bromsgrove Rovers legend, who sadly passed away in October 2024. The following is a write-up of the day, by Sporting Media Officer, along with a gallery of photos from CJ Photography…
Mark’s son Max, along with help from his friends, family and people from Sporting, helped to organise the event to raise funds for the local Primrose Hospice – with the current total incredibly being at over £17,000.
The game saw legends from both Bromsgrove Rovers and Birmingham City play each other – take a look at the gallery of photos below, from Chris Jepson, to see if you can spot any of your favourites!
Large crowds, in the approximate region of 1,500 people, caused long queues to form outside the ground, which in turn resulted in the game kicking off 20 minutes later than the proposed time of 11am.
The Rovers side wore a green-and-white striped shirt, made by Sporting’s kitmaker S66 Sportswear, which was sponsored by Tom’s Fund, a charity set up in memory of Tom ‘Jonah’ Jones, a former youth player at Sporting who died in a tragic accident in the River Severn in September 2018.
Specially made tracksuits featured the logo of the Harry Bennett Foundation – set up in memory of Harry Bennett, a Bromsgrove lad who sadly passed away aged just 16 years old in January 2020, following a brief illness.
The Blues side wore their current away strip – white, with a two tone, blue-black diagonal stripe.
Accompanying the players out onto the field were mascots from two local sides – the Catshill FC U11s and Catshill Warriors FC.
The match itself, which was refereed by Bromsgrove-based George Warren, consisted of two halves at around half an hour each. It was a friendly, yet at times amicably feisty encounter, which finished 4-2 to the Birmingham City side.
Amongst the City scorers was midfielder Matt Birley, who also plied his trade at Rovers during his playing career. He scored a brace, with Blues hero Darren Carter getting on the scoresheet too, with a well-taken finish.
The Rovers goals were both scored by striker James Lemon – a friend of Max’s, who currently plays at Droitwich Spa. The pick of these was his second, which was an audacious lob from just inside the attacking half that flew over City keeper Maik Taylor’s head and into the goal.
Rovers legend Jim McGettrick made several solid saves throughout, whilst the likes of Roger Johnson, Dele Adebola and Matt Sadler appearing for Birmingham ensured it would be a daunting task for the Bromsgrove side.
After the game, the drinks were flowing in the Rousler Bar, where a raffle and auction took place to raise further funds – an avalanche of prizes including an incredible selection of Premier League, Championship and other match-worn signed shirts, featuring some big names, including Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers!
Meanwhile, the youngsters had fun on the bouncy castle, and had the opportunity to play on the pitch after the game.
Reflecting on the day, Mark’s son, Max, commented: “The day was truly incredible, from start to finish. It meant so much to see so many members of the community come to Sporting to pay their respects to my dad, and together raise an amazing amount for the Primrose Hospice – a charity that holds a very special place in our hearts.
“A huge thank you to Birmingham City and Bromsgrove Sporting, for helping make the day so memorable. From myself, and my family, thank you.”
Sunday was a truly magical day – one which saw an amazing amount of money raised for an important cause, with the community coming out, together, in full force, and in large numbers, to pay tribute to a legend of Bromsgrove footballing history.
Kipper; always remembered, never forgotten, and a legacy that will shine brightly, forever.
Photos from Chris Jepson – Bromsgrove Sporting FC
