Taylor Moore’s strength goes far beyond his versatility, physicality and passing ability, as off the pitch, the centre-back has channelled his struggles into helping others.
The defender, crowned this year’s EFL Player in the Community, joined Bristol Rovers in the summer of 2024 while facing personal hardship after his mother’s suicide attempt.
After weathering what was a tumultuous period for him and his family, Taylor committed himself to supporting others in charting their own course, joining forces with Bristol Rovers Community Trust – the official charitable arm of Bristol Rovers Football Club – in launching a mental health initiative called ‘5K Your Way’.
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I think people kind of look up to us footballers as role models, but when you show them a bit of a vulnerable side, they feel that they can open up as well. My name is Taylor Moore. I play for Bristol Rovers Football Club and I’m the EFL player in the community. My dog here, Kenzie, is a 2-year-old black Labrador that I rescued about 6 months ago. And in many ways, I saved him. and in a few other ways, he’s probably saved me and changed my life for the better. I joined the club off the back of something very, very personal that happened with my mom. She attempted to take her own life. And fortunately, now she’s doing well. She’s fine. She’s on her journey and she hit rock bottom. And when it hits you so hard, being someone so close, someone that you love so dearly, uh it’s obviously something that gives you a bit of a wakeup call. And when I joined the club, I sat down with the community trust here that do a fantastic job. And I told them that this meant the world to me. It was a project that I really really wanted to run. I am very very thankful to each and every one of you. 5K your way is basically a 5K walk where we are a community as such and we get people together. We get them walking, but more importantly, we get them talking openly and honestly about their mental health. What have you got it? Oh, look. Make sure you get make sure you get that on the camera. Everyone’s got a different story. Everyone’s got a different battle, a silent battle that they’re fighting every day. I think people kind of look up to us footballers as role models, but when you show them a bit of a vulnerable side, they feel that they can open up as well. I had a gentleman come on on the last walk who who told me that it was the first time in six weeks that he’d left his house for something meaningful. just just to basically give people that safe space and and let them know that they’re able to come down, they’re able to express themselves, be themselves, and they’re able to find the support that they need, uh, is very, very powerful. People realize that no matter what team you support, uh, the reason why we’re doing this is bigger football. I’m very, very proud of what we’ve done here with Bristol Rovers and Bristol Rovers Community Trust, but many, many communities and clubs up and down the country are breaking down the stigma about mental health and putting on events like this. So no matter where you are in the country, no matter who you are, what football club you support, reach out to your local club because I’m more than sure that they are running mental health projects. Wherever you are, whoever you are, uh just understand that you’re not alone.
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