Two cheques totalling £11,000 were recently presented to two charities after a successful charity 24-hour Soccerthon at the Pavilion Leisure Centre last year.

Organised by five-a-side team Huncote Tuesday Knights, the Soccerthon took place in aid of two longstanding members, including the founder, who have been diagnosed with terminal illnesses.

The team have been playing at the Pavilion for over 23 years with the current crop of players ranging from 15-67 years old!

Soccerthon took place consecutively from 5pm to 5pm over the course of one day in September last year.

Over 50 players took part and generous donations from the community meant the organisers smashed their initial target of £1,000.

Regular members played for around eight hours each and despite intending to keep score the match instead turned into a marathon goal-fest!

Pavilion staff donated their time and free use of the leisure centre’s facilities, including the outside 3G pitches and sports hall to make sure the event went ahead.

A presentation evening took place in December, with the two players who inspired the event, Tony Edwards and Pete Carrigan, handing over the cheques to the local branch of the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA), represented by Paul Johnson, with Julie Glover in attendance for Leicester Hospital’s Charity Trust.