Pentland United set for 24-hour running challenge in aid of Sophie’s Story

Players and officials of Caithness amateur football champions Pentland United are preparing for a 24-hour fundraising running challenge – having been touched by the news that a rival player’s young daughter has a rare and life-limiting degenerative genetic disorder.

They are supporting Sophie’s Story, set up for little Sophie Mason who has Batten disease (CLN1). Her dad is Keith Mason, a member of Clachnacuddin’s coaching staff in the Highland League and club captain of amateur side Avoch.

Dunnet-based Pentland United and Avoch, from the Black Isle, are two of the leading amateur clubs in the north and met in last year’s Highland Amateur Cup final – when Keith scored the opening goal, only for United to fight back to win 2-1 and lift the trophy for a record ninth time.

Parents Keith and Lizzie set up Sophie’s Story on GoFundMe after their daughter was diagnosed with the disease in November, aged 17 months, and they have raised almost £19,000 so far. They say their main focus is to make Sophie’s life as fulfilled and comfortable as possible.

Midfielder Sam Mackay is the man behind the Pentland United fundraiser. It has its own JustGiving page with £450 raised there to date.

Twenty-four players and officials from the club will take part in the challenge, starting at 6pm on Saturday, February 22, with someone running each hour for 24 hours.

Sam (35) explained: “We got 24 names, effectively just put everybody into a hat, then your name was drawn and your time slot was drawn. If you were unlucky enough to get a slot for three o’clock or four o’clock in the morning then it’s just the luck of the draw.

“We’re not here to break any records or anything like that – it’s just getting guys to do something for an hour.

“When I first read the news about Keith’s daughter, it gave me a chill. I thought surely there’s something we can do.

“Keith is a well-known guy in north football. I’ve played against him and his brother Colin many times over the years.

“Football is put to one side in situations like this. When I approached the guys to ask if they were all up for doing something, there was no hesitation from anyone.

“It just shows as well that Pentland United is more than just a football club. We’re helping a guy who is part of one of our main rivals on the Highland amateur scene.

“You put all that aside and put yourself in his family’s shoes. It’s absolutely awful what they’re going through, there’s no doubt about that, so I just thought there must be something we can do to help.”

Sam was allocated a time slot of 5am to 6am. “I’m not normally up at that time for a run, but I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said.

Sam, from Golspie, made 350 competitive appearances for Highland League side Wick Academy following earlier spells with Brora Rangers and Deveronvale.

He added: “When we had our end-of-season awards, Michael Gray [co-manager] heavily emphasised that Pentland United is a community club, it’s more than just 11 guys on the pitch – and this is a great example of the community coming together for a good cause.”

Sam’s Pentland United team-mate James Murray is running the Inverness Half Marathon next month for Sophie’s Story. James scored the winning goal in the 2024 Highland Amateur Cup final.

The Batten Disease Family Association estimates that between one and three children in the UK are diagnosed with an infantile form of the disease, CLN1, each year. There is no treatment.

It causes progressive vision loss, seizures, disturbed sleep, stiff muscles, myoclonic jerks, loss of motor function, loss of the ability to swallow, resulting in tube feeding, and increased risk of respiratory infections.

Pentland United won the Caithness county league last summer, while Avoch are the Inverness and District FA Premier Division champions.

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