I am delighted to announce after speaking with my testimonial committee and to Barnsley Football Club, that we have agreed a date for my testimonial game.
The game will take place on Monday 4th May 2015 at Oakwell and will now be part of a fun-packed day at Oakwell combining with Bruce Dyer’s Love Life Festival. The game will involve the current first team as well as a Bobby Hassell Legends XI.
This, we believe, will allow the perfect opportunity to say thank you to the brilliant fans that have supported me over the last 10 years and additionally, giving us all a community day to be proud of as a town.
We have been working on my testimonial match for many months but unfortunately have been let down on several occasions by opponents who have agreed to play in the game and then pulled out. We have worked tirelessly to arrange a game for the 29th July as the club had kindly offered me this date to use in their busy pre-season schedule, to play the match but again we were unable to secure a team to play.
We did have an option for the game but for several reasons, this did not feel right. It would not have allowed me the opportunity to play alongside some of the former team mates and friends I have made over the years at the club. Furthermore, I feel that for all parties involved in the planning of the event and also for those wishing to attend, the revised date allows everyone to be able to make plans bearing this date in mind. Therefore, after speaking to my family and committee, it was decided to approach the club with a view to postponing it until May.
We did have an option for the game but for several reasons, this did not feel right. It would not have allowed me the opportunity to play alongside some of the former team mates and friends I have made over the years at the club. Furthermore, I feel that for all parties involved in the planning of the event and also for those wishing to attend, the revised date allows everyone to be able to make plans bearing this date in mind. Therefore, after speaking to my family and committee, it was decided to approach the club with a view to postponing it until May.
The club throughout this time have been brilliant with me and I would like to thank Patrick Cryne and the Board for their support. I am extremely pleased that we have managed to come to this agreement.
I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank the fans that have supported me over the last 10 years at this fantastic club. I plan to put on a great day in May to show my appreciation to you all. I would also like to wish Danny Wilson and everyone connected with Barnsley FC all the best in the challenge to gain promotion back to the Championship this season.
Bobby Hassell.
