The Darby Rimmer MND Foundation arrived at Spotland on Friday afternoon as their fundraising cycle saw them take in Rochdale.
This week, a group of family and friends of the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation started a cycle from Swindon Town FC visiting each club that Stephen played for throughout his career. The ride is taking six days and has seen them travel through 10 counties as they visited Swindon Town FC, Notts County FC, Liverpool FC, Bolton Wanderers FC, and Rochdale before finishing at Bradford City FC on Saturday.
The aim of the cycle is to raise as much awareness of MND as possible as well as raising funds. The funds raised will go towards supporting sufferers of MND and their families and also research to help find a cure. It has not been the easiest of journeys for them with dreadful weather, a number of flat tyres and bus related accident along the way.
The Trust are making a small donation and the club have donated a signed 2020-21 shirt. We spoke to Stephen on the phone whilst they were at Spotland and he thanked everyone for their efforts. We wished him all the best on behalf of all Dale supporters.
Stephen made 40 appearances for Dale in the 2011-12 season on a loan spell from Liverpool. He was forced to retire from football in 2018 when he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
They are setting off on the final stage of their journey tomorrow by cycling from Spotland to Valley Parade.
If you would like to donate to their fundraising, you can do so at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/kevin-darby1
You can follow their progress at https://twitter.com/kevdarby84