Movember 2021: Day 21

It’s that time of year again! That time when I brave cold cheeks in the name of charity. Yes it’s Movember!

I’ve been doing Movember for about 10 years now as it’s a cause that is close to my heart, and this year, as we are now able to be more sociable again, I am back to fundraising for the Movember Foundation. For those who haven’t heard of the Movember Foundation, they focus on “changing the face of men’s health” with a focus on testicular cancer, prostate cancer, mental health and suicide prevention. If you wish to donate, every little helps, and there are 3 ways you can do so:

• Head to my Mo Space
• Check out my Instagram (@pstetheridge), where I have set up a second fundraiser
• Write a cheque to ‘Movember’ referencing my registration ID (13438480) and mail it to: Movember Europe, PO Box 485, Wilstead, Bedford, MK45 3XN

This year, I’m planning to chart my “Mo-gression” with a series of posts on here. I’m aiming for one every 5-6 days but don’t hold me to that. For each one, I’ll let you have an update on how things are going along with my latest picture so that you can see how the growth is going. But this site is all about sport, so of course I have added a slight sporting twist, as each of my Mo-gression posts will also include a quick look at someone in the sporting world who has a notable moustache. I won’t promise that they will be the most famous moustached sport stars in the world, purely the ones who first came to mind as I put this together.

So… let’s get underway!

Day 21

It’s hard to believe that we’re already 3 weeks through this! I am now well and truly attached to the Monkeytail, so much so that I am considering it making a return next year but for an extended run (wach this space!)

Now I must admit, 21 days into the month, I’m extremely grateful for everyone who has donated, but I must admit that I find myself a little disappointed. I set myself a relatively low initial target of £100, and thanks to your generosity I am already 60% of the way there, while I’ve also had a donation on the Instagram fundraiser, but I was hoping to have a bit more success, especially as I feel like I’ve been pushing harder than usual on social media! I appreciate that everyone is always asking for donations for some charitable thing, while the timing of this right before Christmas probably doesn’t help, but I’ve also had a few people—close family members, no less— say they’ll donate and then back out when they see how to donate.

So let me remind you why I do this:

• Globally, men die 5 years earlier than women, and many of the reasons are largely preventable
• In the UK, 3 out of 4 suicides are men
• 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime
• Testicular cancer is the most common cancer among young men

I’m lucky, I’m able to help the Movember Foundation, rather than need their help. But I can only do so much, and I need your support. As always, any donations would be greatly appreciated!

Sporting Mo

So for Day 21, I look at the wearer of one of the greatest moustaches in sport, with Merv Hughes

Mervyn Hughes is a former Australian cricketer. A right-arm fast bowler, he represented Australia in 53 Test matches between 1985-1994, taking 212 wickets. He played 33 One Day Internationals, taking 38 wickets. He took a hat-trick in a Test against the West Indies at the WACA in 1988–89 that was unusual as it was spread across three separate overs, two innings and two different days. In 1993, he took 31 wickets in the Ashes series against England. He was a useful lower-order batsman, scoring two half-centuries in Tests and over 1,000 runs in all. He also represented the Victorian Bushrangers, Essex in English county cricket, the ACT Comets and Australia A in the World Series Cup.

Hughes’ physical presence, handlebar moustache, penchant for exuberant displays of affection for his fellow players, along with a tendency to talk to the opposition in inventively colourful language and a run-up that at times stretched to 45 paces, made him a firm favourite amongst supporters, who would often imitate his warm-up stretches behind him en masse. In England, on his second Ashes tour in 1993, the crowd often chanted “Sumo” when he ran in to bowl.