West Bromwich Albion cap tribute for player killed in World War One

A charity cycle ride led by a blind Black Country fundraiser will honour the memory of a footballer killed in World War One.

West Bromwich’s Dave Heeley, universally known as ‘Blind Dave’, hopes to raise £80,000 for The Albion Foundation, the charitable arm of West Bromwich Albion Football Club, by cycling the 1,000km (621 miles) Western Front Way, through the World War One battlefields of France and Belgium.

During the trip later this month, Team Blind Dave will visit the Menin Gate memorial at Ypres, in Belgium.

On the walls of the gate are the names of thousands of people who died in the Great War, including former West Bromwich Albion footballer Harold Bache, who was shot by a German sniper in 1916.

West Bromwich Albion give caps to former players – and the cap for Bache will join Team Blind Dave, so the eight cyclists can honour his memory when they visit Ypres on Friday September 27.

After the seven-day cycle challenge is complete, West Bromwich Albion plan to give the cap to Harold Bache’s nephew.

A film by John Bray