Matt Oakley made over 300 appearances for Southampton during a 10-year spell, before moving to Derby County and Leicester City, and also won three caps with the England Under 21 team.
Matt joined his former Southampton teammates and ex-pros from Brighton, Bournemouth and Portsmouth for The Players Foundation’s first Connect event, hosted at St Mary’s Stadium. It was a chance for the players to reconnect over lunch and hear more about the support available from the Foundation, in a presentation by Beneficiary Liaison Officer, Rob Milsom.
After the event, Matt reflected on the importance of players getting together: ‘I think connecting with the older players is always good fun. You talk about the old times and swap stories, and it gives you that sense of the changing room again.
‘Having been a player for more than 20 years, I miss the changing room environment. When you grow up with that you really miss it – I don’t miss the playing, I miss being around people and being part of the changing room.’
And Matt believes it’s vital that ex-players open up more about their experiences: ‘People talk about things more now. If something like this event had come up when I was starting out, you’d have been laughed out of the room. There was that older mentality of it almost being a weakness, whereas I think modern day footballers are quite happy to talk about lots of different things.
‘There are lots of situations that people go through, whether it’s financial or to do with their mental health. So, understanding what The Players Foundation can do for ex-players and how they can be supported is key,’ Matt concluded.
