Middlesbrough players fund 1,000 coronavirus food parcels as Yorkshire clubs show their kindness

The Championship players and their manager, Jonathan Woodgate, have been contacting elderly and vulnerable fans during the coronavirus pandemic, but decided they wanted to go further in helping the local community. So they decided to fund the cost of food parcels which the club's foundation is distributing to some of those hardest hit by the covid-19 outbreak with the help of volunteers from the club's staff.

“We spoke as a group last week about how we could help,” explained captain George Friend. “We’ve been speaking to a number of our elderly and vulnerable fans, but we wanted to do more to help people in a time of need.

“We’ve spoken about the strength of community here and the spirit of Teesside and as players and as a club we feel it is important that we can play a part in supporting the people of the area.”

The club and its foundation are working with Middlesbrough Foodbank, which already has three permanent foodbanks at the Riverside.

Helena Bowman, head of the MFC Foundation, said: “It’s a great gesture by the players, and we can’t thank them enough for their support. They understand the importance of community, and the role that both they and the football club have across our area.”

The Foundation is providing further support via a number of other projects with local authorities around the region.

Clubs across Yorkshire are doing their bit to support the community, with Barnsley another club making an effort to contact elderly supporters.

The Reds have asked fans to let them know of any fellow supporters over the age of 70 who would appreciate a call. They are asked to email [email protected] with details. Once everyone has been contacted, the programme will be expanded to younger age groups.

Barnsley have also donated 6,000 match tickets to local key-workers and NHS staff.

Meanwhile, Rotherham United defender Michael Ihiekwe has made a special delivery of healthy hydration drinks to key workers at Morrisons, Parkgate.

On the day he was shopping for essential items, Ihiekwe also delivered the drinks, which the Millers due in training and matches, from club partners iPRO as a gesture of support, thanking staff from a safe distance for their efforts during the lockdown.

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