Chris Brunt says he can’t wait to get back out on the Hawthorns pitch and face long-term friend and former teammate James Morrison this Saturday (ko 3pm).
The Baggies heroes are going head-to-head at the venue they called home for more than a decade each in a special charity game named ‘Battle of the Legends: Brunty v Mozza’ – with all profits raised from the day going to The Albion Foundation.
And while the ex-Northern Ireland international is assuring supporters that it’ll be more than competitive between himself, Morrison, and the teams they’ve picked, he believes raising money for an “inspirational” organisation is the most important thing.
“I’m really looking forward to the game and the day as a whole,” said Chris.
“It’s been a while in the making. It’ll be nice just to go out there and have a laugh with a load of the lads we’ve played with over the years here.
“The game has been mentioned on and off over the last few years. You don’t get many players staying at clubs for as long as myself and Mozza did at the Albion.
“Ten years here would have been the 2017/18 season for both Mozza and I. It had been mentioned a few times before that and then Covid knocked it back.
“The club have been great with us, and all the proceeds will go to The Albion Foundation, which has been such an important and inspirational organisation since the day Mozza and I arrived here. It’s great that they will benefit from it.
“It’ll be a laugh on the day but I’m sure it’ll get competitive too, which is only natural when you’ve got so many lads playing who’ve been involved in a professional football environment for so long.
“I’m sure there will be a few tackles flying in – a few naughty ones left on people. If I get the chance to leave one in on Mozza then I will do because I know he’ll be trying to do exactly the same thing to me.
“Look, you obviously want to win and you want to do well, but the main thing is to have a laugh and get as many people in through the door as possible and make as much money as possible for the Foundation.
“I think a lot of the lads have been brilliant. There are lots coming in from all over Europe and they’ve had to book flights and give up their time over weekends and stuff like that.
“We’re overwhelmed with how eager some of the lads have been to come and get involved and play on the day, which is great. It speaks volumes for them and the time that they all had at The Hawthorns.
“We’ve got a great turnout though and I’m confident we’ve got a few former fans’ favourites who people will want to come and see again. It’ll be good for them to come back in what will be a nice, relaxed environment and see the fans once more.
“When we initially sat down to talk about organising the game and The Albion Foundation mentioned about arranging it and wanting to play a part, it was only right for us to want to donate the money to them.
“Like I say, they’ve been involved in every season that myself and Mozza have been at the football club and they’ve gone from strength-to-strength. That doesn’t just happen overnight though, they’ve had to put a lot of effort in behind the scenes for such a long time.
“I’ve always enjoyed helping The Albion Foundation out whenever I could and I’ve tried to get involved in fundraising activities throughout my time here. Mozza has done the same. It’s a charity match, so who better to benefit from it than The Albion Foundation - who give so much to the local community.”
