In honour of Peter Whittingham, a memorial football match has been organised between Cardiff City FC and Aston Villa on Wednesday 30th November. This is to honour his legacy, whilst also raising money for the Peter Whittingham Foundation, PW7. To do our part for this CCFC legend, we will be offering matchday parking for the event and donating all funds raised to PW7.
We wanted to honour Peter by telling his story and explain the reason for the PW7 Foundation.
*Further details on the Memorial Match and the matchday parking can be found at the end of this article*
Peter Whittingham
Peter Whittingham was a legend to all, as a footballer, a father, a husband, a son, a brother, and an individual. He was known to light up a room with his humour, warmth, and personality. Cardiff City FC said, as a Bluebird he excelled with talent, ease, grace, and humility.
Peter began his football career in 2003 when he was only 16, after signing with Aston Villa. He represented Aston Villa’s first team up until 2007, which is when he signed with Cardiff City FC. Peter quickly established himself as a CCFC legend, making 459 appearances and 98 goals, before stepping away from the club in 2017. He finished his career with Blackburn in 2018, but he was always a Bluebird at heart.
During his 10 years with CCFC, the renowned Bluebirds reached the 2008 FA Cup Final, the 2012 League Cup Final and won promotion into the Premier League in 2013. Peter scored numerous spectacular long-range goals which undoubtedly helped him earn a place in the EFL’s team, between 2005 and 2015. He played more than 50 league games and impressively won 17 England under 21 caps.
Mark Hudson, Peter’s former teammate and captain, said he felt blessed to have been able to play alongside Peter. He spoke of his great generosity and love for his family. Mark believed the years Peter played for CCFC was an amazing period for the club and he still views Peter as one of the best CCFC players of all time.
One of the reasons CCFC held a special place in Peters heart and caused him to stay for so long, was because this is when Peter met his wife Amanda. The pair settled on the outskirts of Cardiff, and this is where they had their first son, William.
Unfortunately, on March 7th 2020, Peter suffered a traumatic head injury while spending the evening in the Park Hotel, Barry. He was enjoying watching Wales vs England in the Six Nations with his brother-in-law and close friend, when he obtained the tragic injury later that evening after accidently falling down a set of stairs. Peter was quickly rushed to the University Hospital of Wales but did not regain consciousness and sadly died 11 days later, aged only 35.
Amanda was pregnant with their second child when the tragedy occurred, and she gave birth 2 months later to their second son, Seb. It’s truly heart breaking to know that Peter never had the honour of meeting his second born son. With this in mind, a memorial match between Cardiff City FC and Aston Villa (his first professional club) has been organised for November 30th 2022. The game is there to provide his sons with a tangible memory of their father. Whittingham can also finally get the send-off he deserves, after a small funeral could only be had at the time of passing due to COVID-19 restrictions. When Whittingham left CCFC in 2017, he didn’t want a fuss at the time, but after admitted he wished he had a proper farewell for himself and his fans. This memorial match is a way to give Peter Whittingham the goodbye he deserves and wished for, all those years ago.
The memorial match is also a way to officially launch the PW7 Foundation, that has been established in memory of the midfielder. The foundation will act as a lasting legacy to Peter and is there to help improve the lives of children and young people across the UK.
PW7 has chosen 3 charities to help make this happen:
Cardiff City FC Foundation
The Cardiff City FC Foundation is the official charity of Cardiff City Football Club. Their vision is to help children, young people, and families in South Wales reach their full potential. The PW7 has helped fund parts of this charity such as state of the art football coaching.
https://www.cardiffcityfcfoundation.org.uk/
King Henry VIII, Coventry:
King Henry VIII was Peter’s old childhood school. This is where his passion for football began. The PW7 are proud to help fund a sports bursary here, with the aim to inspire children to follow their dreams in sport and help those who may be disadvantaged, meet their potential.
https://kinghenrys.co.uk/alumni/former-pupils/
Winston’s Wish:
After Peter’s passing, his wife Amanda found support through Winston’s Wish. This is a charity who offer support to children who have lost a parent or sibling. Since 1992, the charity has helped grieving children, young people and those who care for them, emotional and practical bereavement support. After Amanda received a haven of support from this charity, the PW7 foundation are committed to help them continue their vital work.
If you wish to support the PW7 Foundation, follow the link below to their website to see how you can help.
https://www.pw7foundation.co.uk/
Peter Whittingham Memorial Match Details:
Date: November 30th 2022
Time: 7pm kick off
Location: Cardiff City Stadium, Leckwith
Buy tickets here: https://www.cardiffcitystadiumevents.co.uk/
Match Day Parking:
To do our part for this CCFC legend, we will be offering matchday parking for the event and donating all funds to the PW7 Foundation.
Location: Leckwith Road, Cardiff, CF11 8AZ
Price: £5 *cash only* (ALL money will go to PW7 Foundation)
Details: No need to book, just turn up
We hope to see many of you supporting the PW7 Foundation by choosing us for your matchday parking.
Rest in Peace Peter Whillingham.
1984 - 2020
“A magical left foot and a gentle soul”