Steve Bracknall: Sunday league social media star releases poignant video about men's mental health

A Sunday league assistant manager turned social media star after posting videos on Youtube and Twitter has released a poignant video focusing on men’s mental health.

Steve Bracknall has amassed thousands of followers on social media by giving people an insight into life as an assistant manager of a Sunday league football team in South Yorkshire. His videos show the trials and tribulations of Royal Oak FC as they try to make it to the Meadowhall Premier Division.

A change of pace from the laughs and Yorkshire-isms of his usual videos, he has used his newfound platform to promote the need for men to talk about their mental health, alongside charities Campaign Against Living Miserably and The Talk Club.

The video shows Steve tidying away the nets when the team’s number 9 Tommy reveals he hasn't been feeling like “everything has been getting on top of me" before Steve sits down and tells him he is there for him.

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post, Steve said: “When we started to give the fans an insight into the inner workings of the Royal Oak FC we vowed to be 100 per cent transparent. We need people to feel a connection to the club. It's something that's been lost in football. We thought long and hard about whether this should be revealed.

"Myself, first team manager Paul Sampson and more importantly our number 9 Tommy, felt that it was important. To let the fans know that it's ok not to be ok. We are human. We win as one and we lose as one. That goes for off the pitch as well as on it.

His videos regularly get thousands of views and likes, but Steve said this latest post has reached out to more people than ever. It currently has more than 4,000 likes and 2,000 retweets.

He added: "We've got the best fans in Sunday league football, of that, there is no doubt, however this video seems to have touched people on a deeper level. Non-football fans have been contacting the club to say thank you for highlighting it. The messages we have received over the last couple of days have humbled us. If we have helped one person to open up then it was worth it.”

Steve, who says his focus is on securing promotion from the Sunday Imperial League D Division, added: "The welfare of my players is of paramount importance but I also feel obliged to look out for the Royal Oak fans too. They have grown with us, you get to know them on a personal level. They understand us and we understand them.

"Listen, I'm no more qualified to talk about this stuff than the next person but football seems to be the perfect vehicle in which we can express these emotions. We all know someone who has been affected by suicide. There's no written rules to how we deal with it. We're expected to just ‘man up’ and ‘crack on’. Here at the Oak we want to foster a culture which lets the players express themselves, whether that be in the penalty area or their personal lives.”

Steve said number 9 Tommy was overwhelmed with the support he has recieved since the video was posted on Monday, and said he can’t wait to get back on the pitch and continue scoring goals for the Oak.

Tommy "He is absolutely overwhelmed with the reaction to the clip. He texted me today actually... The text read "Get me back onto that pitch...scoring goals for the Oak. That's where I belong".

Steve said he speaks to his wife, the often-mentioned ‘Our Nikki’, when he feels down, and said his advice for people who feel down is to speak out.

He added: “Tell someone you trust how you feel. How you honestly feel. Try not to give them the filtered version. If it's too hard to tell someone who is emotionally invested in you then try telling someone else. We can do this... Together as one.”

If you need to talk, contact Samaritans on 116 123, CALM on 0800 585858 or visit https://talkclub.org.