St Helens football tournament in aid of Willowbrook puts 'a lot of smiles on faces'

The tournament, hosted by Penlake Juniors, is part of the club’s partnership with Willowbrook for the upcoming season, aiming to raise money for the charity throughout the year.

One of the teams at last weekend's tournament

The tournament was for the under 7s to under 10s age group

Willowbrook is a local charity that cares for patients with life limiting diseases, and has helped many families associated with the club, so officials and players decided to give something back.

Taking place at the Beeches playing fields in Sutton over the weekend, the tournament had large Willowbrook banners on show and buckets for donations.

The football trophies on show at the tournament

The young footballers were also able to have their picture with replicas of the Premier League, Euro’s and World Cup trophies, which were brought down for the occasion.

Marc Harrison, coach of Penlake’s under 9s team, where his son also plays, said: “[Willowbrook] is a great cause to be honest.

“As a club, it’s [us] helping out the community and giving something back."

After a tough year of lockdowns and Covid restrictions, the tournament was designed to get the youngster’s at Penlake back playing together and help out the wider community.

Speaking of the decision to partner with the hospice, Marc said: “Anything we can do to help the community out is a winner.”

One of the teams at the tournament

In addition to fundraising events, Willowbrook’s logo will also be emblazoned on each of the club’s teams for the upcoming season, from the under 7s up to the open age group.

To donate to Willowbrook Hospice, please visit: https://willowbrookhospice.enthuse.com/cf/covid-19-appeal