Players make special festive delivery to children's hospital
9 December 2015
Youngsters at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children received a little festive cheer this week with a special delivery from Gloucestershire Cricket.
Players and coaches dropped off three boxes of toys donated by local sports hospitality firm Finders Keepers and spent time chatting with the patients.
The toys will be given to the children by Santa on Christmas Day.
Head coach Richard Dawson said: “We wanted to do something positive for the children unfortunate enough to be stuck in hospital during what should be the most exciting time of year for them.
“We are really grateful for the kind donation from the team at Finders Keepers for making this happen.”
Dawson, assistant coach Ian Harvey and eight players dropped off the gifts along with former Gloucestershire wicketkeeper Andy Brassington, director of Finders Keepers.
During the visit the players – who included new signing Chris Liddle and Royal London One-Day Cup final hero David Payne – couldn’t resist showing off their sporting prowess, playing table football, air hockey and table tennis with the patients.
Spinner Tom Smith, who has a one-year-old daughter Rosie, said it had been a powerful experience.
He said: “Going to the Children’s Hospital, as a father, makes you really appreciate what a wonderful job it does and how lucky we are that it is there.
“It was amazing to see how upbeat the children were regardless of what they are going through. I spent quite a long time chatting to a lad called Michael who was a big Bristol Rugby fan but has promised to come and watch a game at the Bristol County Ground next summer.
“It was great for the Club to be able to do something for the children at a time when things are really tough for them.”
The three boxes of toys were purchased from Totally Toys on Gloucester Road.
Andy Brassington added: “We decided to make this donation not only to help support the children at this time of year, but to provide an opportunity for our players to give something back to the city. I remember how much I enjoyed visits like this as a player, and hope the lads had the same experience.”
