Brilliant Sheffield Wednesday initiative gets fans smiling – Sam Hutchinson, Callum Paterson and others jump on the phone

The purpose of today is to get people talking about mental health, something that has become even more important in the midst of a global pandemic, and the Owls were keen to play their part as such a crucial part of so many lives.

So in line with that, the club set about calling up a number of their fans to make sure they were doing ok, with the likes of Sam Hutchinson and Callum Paterson getting involved in the lovely gesture.

Ian North spoke to The Star about the call that his 96-year-old dad, John, received from ‘Hutch’ this morning, calling the midfielder a ‘real star’.

Mr. North has been a Wednesdayite for over 80 years and pre-pandemic was still going to every home game on weekends. Sadly he’s spent the last year at home, so a call from the club made his day.

His son said, “Unfortunately my dad is extremely deaf so cannot take calls over the phone. It is a struggle when I contact him so I had to deal with the phone call myself and pass a message from Sam to my dad so he did not talk personally to him.

“It brightened his day up. He has been isolating at home since March 2020 and not been out apart from getting his COVID jab. Sam Hutchinson is a real star for taking the time to do this.”

And he wasn’t the only one… Hollie Murphy, another lifelong Owl, said that she was surprised to hear the club’s Scottish top scorer on the other end of an unknown caller call.

She told The Star, “I literally had a no caller ID pop up, and I don’t normally answer, but I just happened to do so… I answered and it was just a voice saying ‘Is that Hollie Murphy?” I was like ‘Yeah’ and then came, ‘It’s Calum Paterson from Sheffield Wednesday’…

He was aware that I was a nurse and wanted to check up on how I was doing. He made a reference to the fact I used to work at Weston Park, and he said that the lads were gutted that they couldn’t get up and see the patients as they normally do every Christmas.

He also said if I wanted anything from the boys in regards to the hospital, then I should get in touch with them.

“I think it just proves that at the end of the day, the club cares about the fans… Regardless of the issues at the minute that we are facing as a club, fans are still a priority.”

While ‘Hutch’ and ‘Pato’ were named, it’s understood that a number of other players were involved as they made plenty of calls over the course of the day, eager to give back to the fans that give them so much support.

Usually the club would be out and about doing community visits, but the COVID-19 situation has meant that it’s not been possible.

Today’s efforts, however, prove that – even if it’s just over the phone – they’ll jump at the chance to do their bit.

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