Players get set for 24-hour charity walk

Current and former Exeter Chiefs Women’s players and staff will begin a 24-hour walk at 12 noon tomorrow to show their support for former teammate Laura Sheehan.

The winger was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year from which she developed an autoimmune condition affecting her sight and mobility. Irish international Sheehan is still in hospital in Dublin receiving cancer treatment and tackling an intensive rehabilitation programme to aid her recovery.

The Chiefs Women decided they wanted to show their support for Sheehan by taking on a 24-hour walking challenge on and alongside Exmouth beach, close to where Sheehan used to live when she played for Chiefs.

Chiefs Women’s #1 player Linde van der Velden and the team’s first centurion and former captain Poppy Leitch will kickstart the walk at the western end of Exmouth beach tomorrow.

Players and staff have volunteered for hour or longer slots to ensure the walking momentum continues throughout the rest of the day, overnight and into Saturday morning. All the players will join in for the final hour from 11am to celebrate Sheehan’s number 11 shirt number.

The walk will raise money for the PWR’s official charity, Breast Cancer Now, via a JustGiving page.

Former team and current player Merryn Elworthy, who is taking on three hour-long slots in the 24 hours, said: “The players have fully committed to this challenge and that includes the younger or newer ones who have not even met Laura. We all wanted to show our support for her and to raise money for these charities.

“We are happy for friends, family, sponsors and supporters to join us along the way to celebrate how far Laura has come since her diagnosis and to show our solidarity as a club as she continues her recovery.”

A second concurrent 24-hour walk will also take place in Sandymount, Dublin, involving players from Sheehan’s current club, Railway Union RFC.

Supporters can sign up for time slots here or any donations to BCN can be made here.