Born on this day in 1972 is former Sunderland striker Marcus Stewart, who in September 2022 was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Read on to see where you can donate to Marcus' cause.
During his time at Ipswich, Stewart fired the side to promotion with the winning goal in the play-off final. The following season, he was the second-top scorer in the Premier League with an impressive 19 goals as Ipswich finished 5th.
However, Ipswich were relegated the following season and Stewart himself only scored six. Following Ipswich’s relegation, Peter Reid’s Sunderland came calling to allow Marcus to return to the Premier League.
As we all know, things didn’t go to plan under Reid, before Howard Wilkinson and then Mick McCarthy. Stewart found himself on the bench for the majority of the season, limited to substitute appearances and scoring just once in the league. This came in a 2-1 loss against West Brom, where the Baggies’ relegation was confirmed despite their victory.
After scoring consecutively against Preston, Watford, Bradford and Crystal Palace in the Championship, Stewart began to start more often and forged a strong partnership with Kevin Kyle. He finished the season with 14 goals as Sunderland finished third and lost the play-off semi-finals against Palace.
The following season, Stewart was a major part of the side that stormed the league and won promotion. He scored 16 goals in the league, including hat tricks against Gillingham and Watford, and became a cult hero with a natural goalscoring ability.
Marcus, after firing the lads back to the Premier League, decided to leave on a high. Despite knowing that he’d be perfectly capable of staying at Sunderland and sitting on the bench, earning a small fortune, he decided to leave the club as he knew he was too old for Premier League football.
Stewart joined his boyhood club Bristol City, and retired in 2011 after spells with Yeovil Town and Exeter City.
On September 8th 2022, Stewart was diagnosed with motor neurone disease after 12 months of testing. At the time of his diagnosis, Marcus said: “I would like to take the opportunity to thank those closest to me for their unwavering support since my recent diagnosis. As I take the time to adjust, my intention is to continue to enjoy my work in football and spend time with my family. In the future, I would like to use my platform within football to help raise awareness around MND, but in the short-term, I would like to ask for privacy on behalf of myself and my family.”
Marcus and his wife Louise have set up a JustGiving page with all proceeds going to the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation. You can support and donate here.
For more information on MND, please click here.
