Danny Walsh Memorial Day raises thousands for air ambulance

An annual memorial football match and family fun day has raised more than £3,500 for the Lincs and Notts Air Ambulance.

The Daniel Walsh Memorial Day was held at Harrowby United Football Club on Saturday and saw the Longnecks take on The Breathers, with the Longnecks the eventual winners by seven goals to one.

The match, which also included a ladies’ match, was followed by music and entertainment throughout the day including bouncy castles, barbecue, bungee run, Marvel characters, tombola and a charity raffle. Local singer Tracy Taylor provided musical entertainment alongside Ireland’s Emerald Dave.

On Sunday, another fun-filled day was held at the Three Gables pub, in Signal Road, where John Turner raised nearly £1,000 for the ambucopter charity by getting his beard shaved off after two years of growing it.

Daniel, a 30-year-old father, died following an incident in Edinburgh Road, Grantham, in 2013. The fund-raising event has been held every year since. Last year the event raised £2,800 for the air ambulance.

Daniel’s mum, Deborah Walsh, was delighted with the turnout.

She said: “It was lovely despite the rainy weather. We have been raising money for the air ambulance for a few years now so I am hoping to find out how much we have raised in total shortly.”