The rival teams from West Bromwich United FC donned their boots and turned out on the pitch in March to raise cash for Cancer Research UK. With an original goal of £1,000, the match’s final ‘score’ of £13,201 has surpassed all expectations.

The club, which aims to allow children to play football in a safe, secure and friendly atmosphere, has been supporting Cancer Research UK for years but this was their first time putting on a charity football match. Club Development Officer and head coach Lee Ansell said: “We wanted to try something a bit different this year to bring the community together. We had hoped it would be successful but never imagined that we would raise so much money.

“The reason we support Cancer Research UK is because our club chairman’s parents sadly passed away from cancer, so we’ve always done what we can to help the charity in the fight against cancer.”

The event, held at Birmingham County FA, charged participants £3 to spectate. Lee set up a Just Giving page to collect donations from people involved and the general public, with an initial target of £1,000 which was quickly exceeded. West Bromwich United Football Club are planning on holding the event again in September, this time raising money for two charities – Cancer Research UK and Tickled Pink.

Ellen Jurczak, Cancer Research UK’s local fundraising manager for Birmingham, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to West Bromwich United Football Club for raising such an incredible amount of money, and to Lee in particular for organising the event.

“Cancer Research UK has made enormous progress in the fight against cancer. However, we have only been able to do this thanks to the dedication and commitment of our volunteers and supporters without whom we would not be able to fund our research. In Birmingham alone we spent over £7 million last year on some of the UK’s best scientific and clinical research.”