Will Stephens

When Billy Sharp and his partner Jade went for their 12-week scan in 2011, they were told their baby had gastroschisis. It meant part of his intestines were growing outside his body. The survival rate was around 95%, the pregnancy was being monitored, and there was every reason to think things would be okay. Luey Jacob Sharp arrived six weeks early. Almost immediately, Billy and Jade knew something was wrong. Luey was taken away for surgery. He stopped breathing ten times that first day. Each time, he somehow managed to start again. “He’d make this funny noise.” “I hear it sometimes.” “It will never go away.” Luey made it through the night. The following day, Billy and Jade took him to Martin House hospice, where they were told he might not even survive the ambulance journey. He fortunately did. Then on the Saturday evening, with Billy and Jade beside him watching Match of the Day, his breathing started to go again. “When he did it for the last time, it was as if to say: ‘This is it now,’ and he went.” Luey sadly passed away at just two days old. Three days later, Doncaster were due to play Middlesbrough. Billy had already missed their game against Coventry while Luey was still alive. Now he rang Dean Saunders and asked if he could play. “He wanted to play to score a goal for his son and his family and he was ready to go.” Saunders put him straight back in the team and made him captain. For Billy, sitting at home was not going to make anything easier. “I was feeling sorry for myself, I wanted to change that and the one thing that could do that was football.” Before kick-off, Billy asked for a message to be read out around the Keepmoat Stadium. “This is a minute’s applause to celebrate the short life of Billy and Jade’s son Luey Jacob Sharp.” “Born 27th October, taken by the angels on the 29th.” “Sleep tight son.” Both sets of supporters stood and applauded. Fourteen minutes later, El-Hadji Diouf flicked the ball into his path outside the box. Billy hit it first time on the volley. It flew past Jason Steele and into the net. He ran away, lifted his Doncaster shirt and showed the message underneath. “THAT’S FOR YOU SON.” Dean Saunders was watching from the touchline. “You won’t score a better goal than that.” “It’s incredible.” Middlesbrough manager Tony Mowbray had another way of putting it. “A goal from heaven.” Doncaster eventually lost the game 3-1. But afterwards Billy called it the most important goal of his career. The following day was Luey’s funeral. Billy scored again in Doncaster’s next game at Ipswich, and the home supporters applauded him as well. For him, getting back on a football pitch had been one of the things that helped most. “After losing a child, the best thing I did was go kick a ball again.” “I don’t know what could have happened if I would have left it for too long.” Billy and Jade later set up the Luey Jacob Sharp Foundation to help other families affected by gastroschisis and raise money towards research. “We set up the charity because we didn’t want people to forget Luey.” “It’s his legacy now and we drive it on for him.” #football