The fund is the brainchild of Border soccer identity Carlo Villani.

A hugely-successful charity match in October between AWFA’s best and fairest men and women and ‘the rest’, featuring former Socceroos star Josh Kennedy, raised more than $3000, with further donations pushing that figure above $5000.

In order to get to its goal, Villani has organised a mental health awareness function on March 3.

The event will take place at Albury City Football Club, Jelbart Park, at the cost of $40 per head, including dinner and a talk from a guest speaker on mental health.

AWFA vice-president of high performance Simon Randall said the night is about raising local funds for local issues.

“Because it’s such a big issue now, what we’re trying to do is tie it all together so we have an event at the start of the year and the end of the year,” Randall said.

“It will allow us to amass funds for local groups like Survivors of Suicide, Lifeline, Headspace and we’re also looking at Nolan House.

“We’re trying to get everyone to understand what the Butterfly Football Fund is about.

“It’s not just about football, the broader spectrum is about supporting mental health through football.

“The association (AWFA) will support it as much as they can, but we’re looking towards independents that want to come on board as well.

“These organisations are all local and they need as much support as we can get them, which is what Carlo is setting up through the fund.

“It’s a way of giving back and making sure people are aware of it.”

Randall added Wodonga Diamonds have got on the front foot by undertaking a program through Lifeline where all their coaches will go through training to identify mental health concerns.

“We’re trying to broaden it so it’s no longer seen as a stigma, it’s actually accepted and people can ask ‘are you okay?’,” Randall said.

“It’s not closed off to the local football community, we want everyone who’s interested involved.

“It’s an informal format, so it’s also an opportunity for people who may have concerns to talk to others.”

For further information about the night and payment details, contact Carlo Villani on 0408 220 535.