A tribute to Ethan McLeod

21 year-old forward tragically passes away

The tragic news of Ethan McLeod’s sudden passing is a painful reminder of how unfair and short life can be. Macclesfield’s 21-year-old forward was involved in a car accident on his way home from last night’s game at Bedford and was pronounced dead at the scene.

I can’t believe I’m writing this, and feel apprehensive that you might be uncomfortable reading it. If that is the case, I sincerely apologise.

I don’t want to detract from the club’s beautiful and poignant tribute to Ethan, or suggest I knew the young man beyond in a limited capacity. But equally this is a Macclesfield FC independent website, and I feel as though I am being disrespectful if I don’t say a few words to acknowledge how profoundly sad today’s announcement is.

I was fortunate to witness most of Ethan’s appearances for Macclesfield and was becoming increasingly interested and excited by his development.

Like many young footballers competing for an opportunity in a congested talent pool, the former Wolves academy graduate had to drop down the football pyramid to establish himself. And what makes this so devastating is that he was just starting to blossom.

Ethan captured my interest immediately during his debut as a first half trialist in our opening pre-season friendly against Mansfield. I liked that he appeared ‘mean and moody’ and had a bit of a swagger and ‘edge’ to him on the field.

Written less eloquently, he wouldn’t take any s**t off Mansfield’s defenders and gave as good as he got during the typical pushing and shoving antics that occur at corners. I loved that the youngster wasn’t overawed by the occasion and deduced that he wouldn’t get bullied in the more industrial confines of the National League North.

If I’m honest, I wasn’t sure if Ethan had done enough to earn himself a contract based on what he showcased against Mansfield alone. Clearly, John Rooney knows better and could see the striker’s raw potential which was becoming increasingly obvious with every game.

Ethan’s pre-season and start to life as a Macclesfield player was disrupted when he sustained a hamstring strain against Newcastle Town in July. He had to wait until 13 September to make his Silkmen debut when coming off the bench against Atherton Laburnum Rovers in our FA Cup qualifier. But what a promising debut it was as Ethan scored on his debut from close range to make it 2-0.

On initial viewing Ethan’s goal looked relatively simple as he swept the ball into the net from 10 yards out. But on closer inspection, his anticipation of the cross and movement to get ahead of the defender at the front post to convert the chance showed a real striker’s instinct. From that moment on I started to monitor his progress with much more scrutiny.

Unfortunately, Ethan suffered a minor injury setback to his hamstring and was sidelined for another short spell. I was fortunate enough to chat to him on a couple of occasions as he took part in some light jogging exercises on Macclesfield’s pitch on first-team match days.

I was struck by two things. What a striking physical presence he had – tall, muscular and quick in the build of a modern day Premier League striker. Ethan started out as a winger, and without sounding flippant his stature reminded me of a young Thierry Henry who also began his career as a wide player.

But I was also impressed by how articulate and engaging Ethan was as we made small talk. He was a young man with big hopes and dreams who was only too pleased to chat to a Macclesfield FC fan and be part of our club.

Ethan continued to catch the eye. His excellent first touch and instinctive finish into the bottom corner provided a 1-0 win over Prescot in the FA Trophy – more evidence of his emerging talent and eye for goal.

I was unable to attend our 1-1 draw and witness Ethan’s first league goal for the club against King’s Lynn which earned us a precious equaliser. It’s emotional to reflect on what was his last ever goal.

On Saturday, I made the late decision to make the long trip to South Shields to watch us play in the FA Trophy. As some supporters decided to give this game a miss because they suspected John Rooney may field a ‘weakened’ side, ironically this formed part of my motivation for wanting to go!

I was disappointed I’d missed Ethan’s goal and was pretty confident that he’d be named in the starting line-up against South Shields. And so he was. In reality, Ethan had a pretty quiet afternoon, but once more did produce one sublime piece of skill, controlling a high ball perfectly on his chest before spraying an accurate pass into Justin Johnson’s path. In small but becoming more frequent cameos, you could see what a talent he was.

This next bit is difficult for me. Gathered with a small number of vocal and loyal Silkmen fans after the game, we waited for Macclesfield’s players to come over and celebrate with us. It was a brilliant moment on the back of a fantastic team performance.

One by one, the players formed a line and ‘high fived’ the fans. I was particularly delighted for Luke Matheson and Luke Duffy – two players who have had a difficult time due to returning from injury and loss of form.

As Duffs is my favourite player, I made a point of congratulating him on a great game. In doing so, I inadvertently missed Ethan’s outstretched hand who was waiting to high five me. Embarrassed, I apologised and he gave me a big smile as we eventually did high five.

Afterwards, I was cross with myself for appearing to disregard Ethan and was grateful for his light-hearted and classy response. That gesture said much more about Ethan than me, and I feel quite touched now that this was our last ever exchange together.

Ethan McLeod was a talented, personable, articulate and humble young man. He had the world at his feet and his life has been snatched away from him in the most cruel way imaginable.

On behalf of everyone from the Silkmen News, we send our heartfelt condolences to Ethan’s friends, family, teammates and everyone associated with Macclesfield FC at this extremely difficult time.

RIP Ethan.