A memorial football match in Lincoln has raised over £1,700 for a charity in the city.
The game, which took place earlier in April in memory of former Hykeham Tigers manager Steve Cawte, saw £17,020 raised for mental health charity Lincoln Mind
Matt Drury, 53, is the chairman of Hykeham and played in the match. He said: “I am certain he would have enjoyed it. It was played in the right spirits as well, which he was a big advocate for in terms of respect within football.
“I’m not just saying it, he would have liked everything about it.”
Steve was also the vice-chairman at the club before he died last summer after struggling with heart problems.
“We’re really delighted, a lot of people turned up on the evening. It was a really good event,” Matt said. “The team that Steve coached was taking part, he knew the vast majority of the coaches team as well, and it was nice that his son played as well.”
Steve’s son Charlie scored a penalty late on in the game, which ended 4-1 to the Tigers against a team made up of coaches and members of British Heart Foundation FC.
“Especially late on, it was a cherry on the cake. It was a really nice moment. I was thinking in my head, please goalkeeper don’t save this. But, as it was it was pretty unsavable anyway, in the top corner,” Matt added.
Stuart Bond, 46, who is the manager of the charity chosen by Steve’s wife Nikki for the match, said: “It’s phenomenal. You never know how much will be raised, so when I saw how much I was blown away.
“It’s an amazing amount of money and it will make a difference to Mind and mean we’re able to get out and help more people.”
Hykeham hope to make the Steve Cawte Memorial Cup an annual event, raising money for charity and remembering an integral part of their club.