From the archive - David Lean

** Trigger Warning: Child Sexual Abuse **

 As I'm sure many of you watched back in March, the Footballs Darkest Secret documentary sought to expose the level to which child sexual abuse existed within football. One story you won't have seen in the BBC three part series was that of David Lean. 

David was a victim of the infamous paedophile Barry Bennell, brought to public attention by the testimony of former footballers including Andy Woodward, Steve Walters, and Gary Cliffe. 

Today we speak to David about his first encounter with Barry Bennell, his belief that he was groomed by football, and his subsequent abuse. We also hear how David dealt with learning that his truth was not deemed in the public interest by the crown prosecution service. 

We cannot thanks David enough for taking the time to speak to Man Marking. His bravery, and the bravery of all other survivors of CSA, and their unwavering desire to help others, will undoubtedly have saved lives, and will continues to save lives for years to come. 

** We must warn you that today's episode features in depth descriptions of child sexual abuse, which may be uncomfortable for some listeners. **

The FA have commissioned a dedicated NSPCC helpline for adults who were abused in childhood within the football industry from grassroots to Premier League. If you would like to speak to somebody the free NSPCC helpline for guidance and support is available 24 hours a day on 0800 023 2642

If you enjoy this episode, or any of our other episodes, please pop over to apple podcasts, and give us a rating and a review. 
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/man-marking/id1506661828

You can find us on Twitter @marking_man and don't forget to use the hashtag #WheresTheTalkingLads 

If you have been affected by any of the themes discussed in today's episode, we have listed some organisations below who are there if you need to talk:

Samaritans 
Call 116 132 for free

https://www.samaritans.org/

Papyrus UK
Call 0800 068 41 41

Papyrus Website

CALM ZONE
0800 58 58 58

https://www.thecalmzone.net/help/helpline/

MIND
0300 123 3393

https://www.mind.org.uk/

The Kaleidoscope Plus Group
0800 059 0123

https://www.kaleidoscopeplus.org.uk/