Football tournament raises £2,450 for tragic Telford teenager Lee

Lee Hill of Sutton Hill was 19 when he died after being hit by a bus in September.

And friends and family came together to organise the Lee Hill Memorial Shield in just seven weeks, with four teams from across Telford playing at the Hadley Learning Community pitch.

This week organisers David Simmonds and Jamie Farrelly handed over £2,450 to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust - chosen by Lee's parents because the young trainee mechanic suffered from the illness.

David, 40, said: "I've known Chris and Kelly for about 15 or 16 years, I used to live by them in Sutton Hill.

"Once we heard what had happened I asked Chris what we could do and which charity he would want us to do it for.

"We contacted the Cystic Fibrosis Trust and got a letter of authenticity, and we got the ball rolling from there."

The tournament went ahead in December, with Southwater FC, Britannia FC, the Talbot FC and a Telford veterans team, featuring Lee’s father Chris, facing off.

The Talbot FC were victorious on the day, and after the matches were done the party moved to the Britannia Inn in Aqueduct for a charity raffle and auction that helped raise the total fund.

David said the whole day was an even bigger success than he hoped for.

"To start with me and Jamie set a target of £1,000," he said. "When we knew we had over double that total I was overjoyed.

"We were both elated. Having such a close connection with Chris and Kelly, doing such a good job for such a fantastic cause, words can't describe it."

The Lee Hill Memorial Shield is now set to become an annual event, with David and Jamie to hold meetings in the coming months.

David said the group was grateful to Glenn Bayliss at Hadley Learning Community for arranging the use of the pitch for free, CamVisuals for the photographs, also for free, and to everyone who donated money or prizes.

No Gym Required sponsored the shield, and Chillogic sponsored the medals.