A Sheffield United supporter has revealed George Baldock's heartwarming gesture towards a young fan during his time at Bramall Lane.
Baldock died at the age of 31 on Wednesday, having been found in the swimming pool of his house in Athens by his landlord.
Doctors attempted to revive him but he was pronounced dead. A post-mortem ruled his cause of death to be 'drowning in water'. Police say there is no initial indication that the death was suspicious.
Advert
Baldock was contracted to Greek side Panathinaikos at the time of his death, having joined them following his departure from Sheffield United in the summer.
The right-back played for the Blades for seven years, twice helping them earn promotion to the Premier League.
Tributes have poured in from across the footballing community for the popular defender, who recorded an emotional message to Sheffield United fans prior to his departure from the club in June.
Advert
One of those tributes came from Blades supporter Marie Purdy, who called in to BBC Radio Sheffield to recall an incredible gesture from Baldock.
She revealed that Baldock had heard that her son, Harvey, was suffering from health issues, with the seven-year-old having been diagnosed with a faulty heart valve.
He required surgery, and was told he would require further surgery in the future.
She explained: "The first thing Harvey said [after the surgery] was, 'Can I still play football?'
Advert
"We wanted to do some fundraising to get a defibrillator, and we'd just started it, writing to clubs, seeing if there's anything we could, like signed shirts, to raffle them off.
"Then came COVID. And it stopped us in our tracks.
"Out of the blue, we got an email from Dave McCarthy [head of operations] at Sheffield United. Every Christmas, they [the players] visit hospitals and do things for charity, and they'd been stopped by COVID.
"We got this email saying the club would like to help, and they asked Harvey whether he could come to the club."
Advert
She then explained how her partner took Harvey to Bramall Lane, where they were met by Baldock and his team-mate Sander Berge.
After hearing Harvey's story, Baldock then offered to pay his own money to buy him a defibrillator so that he could feel confident while playing football.
"Later that day, my partner came back with my son absolutely gobsmacked," Purdy said.
Advert
"They'd gone on the pitch, and had a tour around - where they could, with the restrictions.
"From behind some seats came Sander Berge and George Baldock.
"They were asking about Harvey. Then George said, 'This has got nothing to do the club, but I want to buy you a defib. I want to help.'
"This was coming out of George's money. He didn't want any recognition for it, he didn't want any publicity.
"He helped us to find the defib and get it sorted. The club then got it sorted - it was off George's back and a gift to Harvey so that he could continue playing football and giving us peace of mind."
She then explained that Christian Eriksen's on-pitch cardiac arrest at Euro 2020 - which required the Denmark midfielder to be fitted with a defibrillator - prompted her and the rest of Harvey's family to share the story publicly.
She added: "Whenever we saw George, he'd always ask how we were.
"The last time we saw him was earlier this year, before he left the club - which we were gutted about.
"We told him that Harvey's team had just been promoted, and that Harvey had scored the winning penalty.
"We showed him the videos on my phone, and he was overwhelmed. He was so happy.
"I said, 'That's because of you. He probably wouldn't have stuck with football, because he got anxious playing football.'
"He was such a nice person, and it's so heartbreaking that we've lost him."
Topics: Football, Sheffield United
Ryan Smart