Jake Daniels: Blackpool can be template for future
- Published
I am ready to be myself - Daniels
Jake Daniels had the "perfect environment" at Blackpool to come out as gay and it can be a "template" for clubs to help players in the future - those involved in the process have said.
On Monday afternoon, 17-year-old Daniels became the first professional in the UK men's game for more than 30 years to come out while still playing.
LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall and the English Football League were two of the organisations the Championship club worked with for many months before the announcement.
'World football will be in a better position'
The EFL's head of equality, diversity and inclusion David McArdle praised Blackpool, saying: "They took the time, they listened and they wanted to make sure everything was right to allow Jake to flourish.
"We've seen that with his football, his football career has flourished, he made his first-team debut, he hit the magical mark of 30 goals in a season. It just shows that Jake is really comfortable and let his football do the talking."
McArdle added: "It allows us to have a bit of a template so when any men's team, in the UK or around the world, have a player who chooses to come out, there's a bit of 'this is how this is done'.
"I think what Blackpool have done, not just for the EFL but for world football, is allowed clubs to be in a better position two, three, four, or five years down the line."
Stonewall's director of programmes Liz Ward added: "I really feel that football is at a moment where it's ready to have this conversation. I think that's because of the investment that's been put in by the Premier League, by the FA, by clubs themselves, the LGBT fan groups - we are seeing attitudes change."
Support from team-mates
Blackpool's academy director Ciaran Donnelly said the reaction of Daniels' team-mates at the club was "really impressive", making for the ideal environment in which the player could be himself.
"We tried not to let it be a really formal process, we wanted Jake to be in control. He drip-fed it in to the captain, one or two of his closer mates within the squad, and the information worked its way out to the rest of the team," Donnelly told BBC Radio Lancashire, external.
"I think it's a mark that it stayed in our environment, it could have become a big story out of our control.
"But the respect and the love for Jake within the group made for a really nice group of people and it was the perfect environment for Jake to do this."
Stonewall's Ward added: "The fact that Jake has felt it was safe and he'd be supported is absolutely beautiful."
'Mature beyond his years'
Daniels made his first-team debut in early May but has been at Blackpool since the age of seven.
Donnelly said his journey at the club's academy had its typical "ups and downs", but that Daniels has impressed with his maturity.
"He had a period out of the academy when he decided he didn't want to play football for a short while, and then came back," said Donnelly.
"Certainly this last 18 months he's really kicked on and really done well with his football.
"To get to this point, he's shown immense maturity, and we're just really glad that we've been able to be a part of that and that he's trusted us with that.
"It's not been easy for Jake being able to articulate that to us and then ultimately feel comfortable enough to actually say the words and be honest and open.
"It's been over the course of this season, and Jake's always been conscious that it never affects his football, football is what he wants to do and that's ultimately what he's at Blackpool to do.
"In the background, the work that Will Cowell has done as our welfare officer and the connection that he's had with Jake, and then bringing everyone into the fold, talking with his mum and his dad and Jake, it's just been a really heart-warming process, to see a lad gain that confidence and have that belief to go and do what he's done.
"He's just one of us, just one of the boys, and that won't change."
'Ultimately this is Jake's story'
The reaction to Daniels' announcement has been hugely positive, with the likes of England captain Harry Kane, Gary Lineker, the Duke of Cambridge and Prime Minister Boris Johnson all sending messages of support.
"I called Jake last night just to see how he was and I think we're all taken aback by just how big the response has been," said Donnelly.
"It's hard to prepare because it's unchartered waters and you don't know what you're going into, but to see the overwhelming positivity coming through, the profile of the people who are writing comments - the reaction has been unbelievable."
He added: "Whether there's reaction out of the game that might be different we'll wait and see, but in the game, we're ready."
Talking about what the future holds for Daniels, McArdle said: "I think it's just what we've done in the build-up to this moment in terms of all the support mechanisms… be guided by what Jake wants.
"If Jake wants to tell his story more then lets allow him to do that, if he wants to be a role model, let's allow him the opportunity…. Ultimately this isn't football's story, this is Jake's story.
"We need to ensure he's given the opportunity to do what he wants to do. And be a role model if that's what he chooses to be."
He added: "Football was never aiming to have a player to come out, that wasn't our end goal. Our end goal was to improve the environment, to educate, to challenge fan behaviour, to make sure everything was in place for if a player made that personal decision, the game would support and look after them."
Stonewall's Ward said: "Football is a very high-pressured environment and I often think for male footballers especially, it's scary to add an added pressure.
"We would never call for people to come out but when we see those that are, how inspiring that can be is just immense."