THE MELBOURNE Football Club and AAMI Park hosted a special one off event on Wednesday when former EPL hard-man turned Hollywood star Vinnie Jones gave a motivational talk to youths involved in a life changing YMCA program.

The YMCA Bridge Project creates opportunities for young men and women who have served time in juvenile detention to find work and a have a new start on their release back into the community. The Project helps young people reconnect with mainstream society through employment, mentoring and training.

As Vinnie Jones has had more than his share of troubles in his life, he spoke to the dozen or so young ex-offenders about his own experience and highlighted the importance of seizing second chances and taking on responsibility to reconnect with life.

Now famous for his roles in movies like Snatch and Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Vinnie Jones won an FA Cup with Wimbledon again Liverpool in 1988 and believes football was his saviour from a negative lifestyle.

In his own colourful way Vinnie kept the group engaged for just under an hour before then heading out to the AAMI Park surface for a relaxed interaction with the Bridge Project crew, posing for photos, signing autographs and even showing off his soccer skills.

Without support, it is not easy for a young person to leave custody and slip back into a regular lifestyle. The Bridge Project recognises that all the young people in our programs require support and investment to grow as independent resilient individuals.

The YMCA Bridge Project is important to our community for creating social cohesion. More importantly, the Bridge Project creates a positive experience for young people looking for a second chance.

The Bridge Project relies on donations and support from Melbourne’s business community, for more information on Bridge or to make a donation visit http://www.bridgeproject.ymca.org.au/donate.html

Vinnie Jones was made available to Melbourne FC and the Bridge Project through both organisations strong partnership with New Balance who hosted Vinnie as their guest in Australia.