Remembering Ernie Cooksey for ErnieFlag.co.uk

You may or may not know who Ernie Cooksey is, for those of you who do, I'm sure you'll share the same opinion as me about him, and for those that don't then I'm sure you'll understand what type of person he was after reading this.

Ernie was your typical lower league footballer, he was a grafter on the pitch and a battling midfielder, probably best known for his time at Crawley Town, Rochdale, Oldham and Boston. As a Rochdale fan, I was lucky enough to see Ernie play and to meet him, and I can honestly say he was one of the friendliest footballers I have ever met. He was genuinely a top guy who was happy to talk to fans and gave everything for the club.

In early 2008 Ernie was diagnosed with malignant melanoma, a severe form of skin cancer, he'd battled the illness before in 2006. In the early hours of July 2nd 2008, aged 28, Ernie Cooksey died, leaving behind his partner who was 5 weeks away from giving birth to their daughter.

Following his death, a group of Oldham fans decided to set up www.ernieflag.co.uk - basically what it says on the tin, taking Ernie's flag to every Oldham game (and more!) - a way to both remember Ernie Cooksey and to raise awareness of the illness that took him. 

I was asked to contribute to the website and remember Ernie's time at Rochdale, so please head over there and read my article.

Please visit www.ernieflag.co.uk and follow them on Twitter @ernieflag