Sheffield United: Former chairman links up with Curtis Woodhouse, Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday favourites

Woodhouse, who made over a 100 appearances for United after joining them in the late Nineties, is the driving force behind ‘It Starts Monday’ - an online community which aims to provide support via WhatsApp on issues including weight loss, nutrition and depression.

As part of a drive to expand ISM’s reach, Woodhouse enrolled the support of Scarborough Group International to help promote a six week programme of internet based workshops which will culminate in the inaugural It Starts Monday Cup; an eight-a-side tournament being staged at the Olympic Legacy Park in Attercliffe.

United legends Brian Deane, Paul Devlin, Dane Whitehouse and Carl Bradshaw have all agreed to lend their backing to the event, which will see participants assigned a celebrity mentor to help assist them through the challenge. Wednesday’s Barry Bannan, Josh Windass have also agreed to come on board, together with Carlton Palmer, boxer Ryan Rhodes and Leeds captain Liam Cooper.

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“At It Starts Monday, we want to help create a positive lifestyle change for those people struggling to find the motivation to make better decisions around their health by providing advice and support on fitness, nutrition and mental wellbeing,” said Woodhouse, who was crowned British light-welterweight champion after retiring from professional football.

“We’ve run similar online challenges and the participants have seen amazing results so we’re incredibly excited to partner with Scarborough Group International to bring our It Starts Monday Cup to South Yorkshire.”

The challenge, which costs £500 per team of 10 to enter, is scheduled to begin on Monday 26 August with the tournament at the OLP set for Sunday 2nd October. A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to charity.

McCabe, a lifelong United supporter, is believed to have been the longest serving member of Bramall Lane’s board of directors before being ousted following a High Court battle with his former co-owner HRH Prince Abdullah bin Musa’ad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. The Saudi Arabian royal is still in sole charge of United.

“Being an active sportsperson with a young family, I’m acutely aware of the need to stay in shape, not just physically but mentally, although it’s not always as easy as you might think,” said Simon McCabe, SGI’s chief executive and son of Kevin.

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“Creating healthier and active communities is at the heart of what we do and our role as development partner for Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park gives us a unique opportunity to leverage our facilities and connections to reach out into the local community and help promote the benefits of adopting a healthier lifestyle.”

SGI is one of the country’s largest privately owned mixed property companies and is the city council’s development partner for the next phase of the OLP project - the UK’s only dedicated life sciences site working in areas such as innovation in sport, health and wellbeing.

To take part in the challenge, contact: [email protected]

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