Star Stockport County striker, Isaac ‘Tanto’ Olaofe, has officially left the Greater Manchester club for a move up the English pyramid.
Affectionately referred to as Tanto by players, coaches and supporters alike, the County forward has been one of the League One side’s most regular goal threats in the last couple of years, but now the London-born footballer is heading back down south.
The 25-year-old, who joined the Hatters back in January of 2023, finished his debut season at Edgeley Park as their top scorer in the third tier with 20 goals to his name, the most of any player in an EFL season since club legend Luke Beckett in 2002/03.
More than two decades on – and besides former marksman Paddy Madden’s offensive contributions – he’s become one of the biggest and firmest fan favourites for obvious reasons. However, Tanto has now left Stockport for pastures new, joining recently promoted Championship club, Charlton Athletic FC.
Ah Tanto! You will be missed by the County faithful! Go smash the Champ lad and thanks for the memories 🔥 pic.twitter.com/nJOmAJj4V6
Joining the second division returnees from the south-east side of the capital on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee, Olaofe leaves Stockport County having scored 37 times and registered a handful in 121 appearances.
Signing a three-year contract with the Addicks following his 24/25 campaign, which saw him register a total of 16 goal contributions, he described the switch as “a great feeling”.
Writing a message simply titled, ‘Stockport County – Thank you for everything’, on his own social media, Tanto said: “I want to thank everyone at Stockport, from the management, coaches/backroom and my teammates for the great memories, experiences, and friendships we’ve shared over the years!
“A massive shout out to the ‘heart of County’ – the supporters – for the love and support. This experience has helped to mature me and has helped in shaping me in making me the player I am today, so once again, thank you all! Up the Hatters! It’s been an amazing journey.
Meanwhile, the majority of the County faithful are understandably gutted, with one fan posting, “My kids will be absolutely gutted” (along with a picture of them together), and another adding: “First of many heartbreaks for my boys! They were thrilled to meet you, and thank you for being so good with them.”
Others have brushed past their gratitude more quickly and are simply ‘baffled’ by the decision to let him go, with one person commenting, “Why on earth have we sold him? Shocking”; most have simply put something along the lines of, ‘Cheers, now I’m crying.’
Speaking via a lengthy club statement, County CEO Simon Wilson bid a fond farewell to Olaofe: “It is with both a heavy but also proud heart that we say goodbye to Tanto, a player who has added so much to our club in the two-and-a-half years he has been here.
“I remember in his first interview, Liam asked ‘how would you describe yourself?’, to which Tanto replied ‘I like to be a nuisance for defenders’! He has been that for sure, but so much more, too.
“We will remember the special goals, like the header to equalise in the League Two Play-Off semi-final against Salford, the hat-trick vs Wrexham in the title-winning campaign, and the mazy run against Bolton last season. But more importantly, we will remember so much more of his personality and positivity, which brought so much to our environment.
“But we’ve been open in saying that the future of the Club is smart player trading, and so on presentation of this offer – which represents over 10x the original fee paid and gives a player who has given everything to the club, the opportunity to play at a higher level – we felt it was something we had to do.
To those questioning the thinking behind the move, he reiterated that the Championship hopefuls will now challenge themselves to recruit just as smartly once again. It looks like the overarching plan is to do shrewd, mindful business wherever possible.
Featured Images — Stockport County (via website/YouTube screenshot)/Charlton Athletic (via X)
Sport
Live football to be prescribed by some GPs to help treat patients with depression
Danny Jones
Live football looks set to be prescribed by a section of the NHS in an effort to try and help people suffering from depression.
As part of the experimental new wellbeing and mental healthcare initiative, GPs across the UK could soon be able to suggest watching football in person as part of their wider treatment plans.
While it may sound like a somewhat unorthodox approach, it’s sparked plenty of conversation on social media and is already gathering some steam up and down the country.
The scheme is being pioneered by Labour MP, Dr Simon Opher, the representative for Stroud, as well as Ecotricity owner and green industrialist, Dale Vince.
Today we’ve announced Football On Prescription. Football clubs up and down the country and up and down the leagues can take part in this – and I hope they will. Mental health is a big issue, as are loneliness and isolation. One of the superpowers of football is its inclusivity -… pic.twitter.com/OWNOag6Fcc
‘Prescribed footy’, to coin a somewhat jarring colloquialism, is set to be rolled out to relevant patients across the Gloucestershire region diagnosed with depression and some other mental health conditions.
Those on the receiving end of these prescriptions will be offered free tickets to watch local National League side, Forest Green Rovers (FGR), based in the town of Nailsworth.
Vince, who founded Ecotricity – formerly known as Renewable Energy Company – back in 1995, bought Forest Green back in 2010 and is just passionate about football and mental health as the push for clean energy and environmental causes.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio in an interview on Tuesday, 22 July, the 64-year-old Norfolk-born OBE said: “We just do the things that we see, that we think could be done, should be done, that will help; whether it’s helping our planet, our country – people here [in Gloucestershire]…
“When you attend football matches, particularly regularly, you find yourself a part of something, a part of a group of people with a common purpose. It’s a wonderful social experience that we think would be really good for people suffering from mental health problems.”
Despite some doubters and detractors questioning his motives online and in the media, he insists the sentiment is purely altruistic, and FGR hope to aligning itself with big causes like mental health, even making the first fully vegan-certified football kits ahead of the 2025/26 season.
He also went on to add, “We also won’t take adverts or sponsorship from gambling companies: they do great harm in our society.”
As for Dr Opher, he has continued to champion ‘social prescribing’ across his medical and political career, backing it as a viable alternative to common medication such as antidepressants for some individuals with mild-moderate depression.
The live football on presecption concept has been met with plenty of pushback online, including lots of discourse surrounding priorities and the NHS remaining underfunded, but only time will tell how well these early trials go.
What do you make of the idea of football being put forward as an aid for depression and do you think it should be considered by the NHS at large?
A giant ‘carnival on bikes’ championing Black culture is coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
One of the biggest bike ride events in the country, dubbed a ‘carnival on wheels’, is coming to Manchester this year.
The Black Unity Bike Ride (BUBR) was set up in London following the murder of George Floyd, which took place on 25 May 2020 and set shockwaves around the world.
Now, as the event is looking to reach across the UK, the event celebrating Black culture, joy, empowerment and unity is coming to our city region and its surrounding areas for the first time ever.
It’s set to be a truly brilliant and inspiring event.
Teaming up with London Marathon Events (LME) once again, the mass participation veterans have been lending expertise since 2021, and now they’ve reached a new five-year agreement to help continue strengthening BUBR and, hopefully, create a national movement by setting up in two new cities.
Manchester marks the first stage of the Black Unity Bike Ride expansion, which will see thousands take to cycling from Alexandra Park in Moss Side on a 12-mile route through the city and back to the beautiful outdoor space.
Aiming to mirror the success of the flagship BUBR event down in the capital, Manc participants and supporters can expect a vibrant, ‘festival feel’ with pumping music throughout.
Back at Alexandra Park, there’ll be even a huge pop-up home base for the event, bringing together Greater Manchester’s Black community with a big food and vendor village, more music and an uplifting atmosphere all day long.
The inaugural Manchester event will come just a fortnight after the sixth annual edition of the founding Black Unity Bike Ride in London, which sees waves of cyclists take on 17 miles, starting at Leyton Sports Ground and finishing in Dulwich Park.
Credit: Black Unity Bike Ride Manchester (supplied)
Promising route leaders, cheer zones and pitstops on the route, plenty of music, not to mention various indie food and drink traders pulling from a wide range of different ethnicities and cuisines, it’s this kind of full-on festival energy that BUBR Manchester is striving to capture.
Once again, it’s a ‘carnival on wheels’.
BUBR MCR 2025 will take place on Sunday, 17 August, the birthday of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, a key political activist – the forefather of the ‘Garveyism ideology – as well as publisher, journalist and orator who has his own national day named after him in his home country of Jamaica.
He advocated for the empowerment and rights of African descendants and founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA), in addition to organising America’s first-ever Black nationalist movement.
You can see the event documentary film, which chronicles last year’s Black Unity Bike Ride in full down below. It really is a moving watch – pardon the pun.
It’s also worth noting that the Black Unity Bike Ride Fest is completely FREE, as the goal is to get as many people as possible. You can sign up
BUBR founder, Tokunbo Ajasa-Oluwa, said of the upcoming event: “What began as a bold idea on London’s streets has grown into a national movement. We are very excited to bring the event to Manchester, it has been an aspiration for a few years so we can’t wait until Sunday, 17 August.”
“BUBR has valued London Marathon Events’ support since 2021, and we are very proud to extend this relationship with a new five-year commitment. The partnership is a true statement of intent when it comes to community, inclusion and inspiring active lives.”
BUBR has been to Rwanda, South Africa, Ghana and more; Manchester is up next and there’ll be another new home in 2026.
Danny Jones -
2nd July 2025 
