I know what Jake Daniels is going through because I did it myself

I was getting off the Tube in east London on Tuesday when my phone started buzzing. It didn’t stop. I thought something must have happened — something big. And when I heard Jake Daniels had become the first openly gay men’s football player in England, I was delighted. It takes real bravery to do that.

I know because I was the first English pro to come out. Twelve years ago it seemed like a non-story — it was featured on Sky Sports and picked up in America, but it wasn’t treated as a big deal. Even now people don’t realise I was the first, which is great.