He's a good guy. Didn't know about his brother.
how heart rending was that.everything in perspective.
Didn't hear it...what did he say?
Didn't hear it...what did he say?
Sounds as if it was pretty much the same as an interview that was published in The Times today.
Leukaemia puts points deductions and FA Cup fixtures in perspective, says Coventry City’s Carl Baker
Coventry City have had to put up with a turbulent time over the last few seasons, culminating in a ten-point deduction from Sky Bet League One in a campaign where they have been forced to play home matches at Northampton Town’s Sixfields Stadium.
But the team’s hardship is nothing compared to what Carl Baker, their captain, has been through on a personal level after losing Michael, his elder brother, to leukaemia four years ago and watching Dean, his younger brother, bravely fight back from the illness.
It is why Baker, the effervescent midfielder, will look for inspiration from above as the 1987 winners look to produce another shock against Arsenal in Friday’s FA Cup fourth round at the Emirates Stadium, even though he rationalises the challenge ahead.
“Leukaemia puts it all into perspective – even when you lose a game,” he said. “Sometimes you can go home and be absolutely devastated at losing but then you think about what some people are going through.
“I always have my own little ritual that I always do before the game, saying a couple of prayers and asking Michael to look over me and help me through the game, help me chip in with a goal or help us get a result.
“I do that all the time and I have done since the day he passed away.
“I want to do him proud, I know he’s looking down over me so every time I set foot on the pitch I want to be able to do him proud.
“My younger brother Dean got diagnosed with leukaemia when he was 16 and he had chemotherapy and blood transfusion for three years.
"So that was really difficult, at 16 years old he should be in school doing his GCSEs and he had to come out and miss all that.
"But fair play to him now he’s got a full-time job, he’s just got engaged, he’s got the all clear last year. He’s 21 now.
“He’s had to have a hip operation because the chemotherapy has worn most of his bone down in his hip so he still has difficult times, a 21-year-old boy should be playing football with me down the park, not getting hip surgeries and stuff.”
Baker, an avid supporter of charities, is helping the fight against leukaemia and even supported a Coventry follower who succumbed recently to the illness.
“I went to the funeral of a young Coventry fan who passed away just after Christmas and I was really close to his family,” he said. “I’ve seen both sides of it, the joy of Dean getting through it and the heartbreak of it all going wrong with Michael so I can relate to families.
“It’s nice for me just to be able to get involved in it, and if I can do certain little bits just to help them out – by raising money or speaking to them – that’s the least I can do.
“Hopefully everyone will keep behind the cause and they will get a cure for it.”
Baker, a 31-year-old Liverpudlian, still finds football matters important too and feels the fans’ pain at having to play home games 35 miles down the M1, after talks with owners of the Ricoh Arena broke down in the summer.
“I’ve got a lot of close friends who are Coventry fans and some of them still don’t go to the games,” he said. “I can understand it; I support Liverpool and I wouldn’t like to go and watch them play anywhere else apart from Anfield.
“I can totally see that they don’t want the club going out of the city and I think it’s important to get something resolved sooner rather than later. The last thing you want to do is miss a generation of fans who are not going to be taken there because their parents and uncles think it’s wrong.”
One word to sum up that interview = Passion
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
A word missing from the sisu vocabulary..........now money, then your talking their language
A very rounded, passionate young man who spoke with pride of his roots, how he has achieved and his family. Been through a lot with is brothers, and a lot stronger for it. I'll even forgive him for being a Liverpool fan.
A cheap shot G a very cheap shot!Once again trying to deflect a thread, any thread and turn it into your usual bile and prejudice.
Anyone who's met Carl will know he's a wonderful man. Loves Coventry City and the City itself. He's got a lovely family and his kids support Coventry.
Whatever happens on the pitch, for me Carl will be remembered for his wonderful work off the pitch.
I saw this lovely story previously posted about Bakes playing for Stockport the weekend after his brother sadly passed away was not expected on the team sheet and yet insisted on playing. The away end presented him with a card that they had all signed!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/paulfletcher/2009/09/carl_baker_and_stockport_an_ex.html
A word missing from the sisu vocabulary..........now money, then your talking their language
Once again trying to deflect a thread, any thread and turn it into your usual bile and prejudice.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?