A FORMER soldier who suffered severe injuries while serving in Afghanistan has inspired Warrington Wolves ahead of the Carnegie Challenge Cup Final, tomorrow, Saturday.
Despite losing his right leg below the knee, left leg above the knee, and right arm in an explosion Andy Reid is facing life head-on inspiring others across many walks of life.
He has presented at a number of businesses and schools in the area and is keen to expand this further across more fields in the north west.
The first team welcomed him to a recent training session where he talked to the squad about his experiences, interacting with the players and coaching staff. He spoke to the players about his reasons for joining the army, the incident that caused his injuries and focussed on explaining the goals he has set himself to help him achieve what he has so far.
He said: “The values and standards set in the army are similar to those on and off the rugby pitch. There is teamwork involved in both which gave the players something to relate to. I had a good reaction from the team and hopefully they went away understanding how you can cope with change and adversity. Some of the players asked me questions and had photos taken after my presentation which was really pleasing as it is a rarity.”
Wolves’ football manager Karl Fitzpatrick added: “In the last two years we have had some inspirational people come and speak to the players, Andy was certainly right up there with the best of them. Although he has had major life changing injuries his outlook and positivity on life is quite remarkable. I would like to thank Andy for taking the time and speaking to the players.”
Picture shows Andy Reid at the recent training session.
