Celebrity team including soap stars in football match for Mustard Tree charity in Manchester

The celebrity team will feature actors from soaps Coronation Street, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks in a game raising money for Manchester homelessness charity Mustard Tree.
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Celebrities including soap stars and former professional footballers will be lacing up their boots for a charity match in aid of a Manchester homelessness organisation.

The Jet2 Allstars, which usually includes famous faces from the small screens from programmes such as Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and Emmerdale, will be taking part in the fund-raising match for Mustard Tree.

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The stars, who will be joined by a few ex-pros and some of their celebrity friends, will take on a team of lawyers from the firm Shoosmiths and representatives from the Manchester charity.

The match will be the centrepiece of a family fun day raising vital money for Mustard Tree, which says the Covid-19 pandemic and the current cost of living crisis means there has been high demand for its services from struggling Manchester people over the last few years.

When is the football match for Mustard Tree and who is playing?

The fund-raising football match for Mustard Tree sees the Jet2 Allstars take on Shoosmiths and Mustard Tree, which will be made up of legal professionals from the company and people connected to the homelessness charity.

The Allstars contains stars of soap operas past and present, former footballers and a few celebrity friends. The side only plays a handful of games each year, and the XI which turns out depends greatly on filming schedules, but in the past the likes of Corrie stars Alan Halsall (Tyrone), Andy Whyment (Kirk) and Sam Aston (Chesney), and Hollyoaks actors Nick Pickard aka Tony Hutchinson, Ashley Taylor Dawson (Darren Osbourne) and Owen Warner (Romeo Nightingale) have all pulled on the Allstars’ shirt.

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This year’s match takes place at AFC Monton on Sunday 2 April and is the centrepiece of a family fun day lasting from noon until 5pm. The match kicks off at the amateur club’s ground on Granary Lane at 2pm and there will also be a fun fair, a raffle and food stalls. In addition visitors will have the chance to win two flight tickets to any destination in Europe, donated by the airline Jet2.

A charity football match for Manchester homelessness charity Mustard Tree will pit a team of celebs against a side made up of lawyers and representatives from the charityA charity football match for Manchester homelessness charity Mustard Tree will pit a team of celebs against a side made up of lawyers and representatives from the charity
A charity football match for Manchester homelessness charity Mustard Tree will pit a team of celebs against a side made up of lawyers and representatives from the charity

Tickets for the event are £5 for adults and £3 for children, with a family tickets for two adults and two kids costing £10. To buy tickets or find out more, visit Eventbrite here.

Mustard Tree has been Shoosmiths’ designated office charity for the past year and the fund-raising match comes at an important time for the charity, which has its main base on Oldham Road in Ancoats. The law firm visited the charity’s headquarters to see its work first hand, including a food club for people struggling with grocery bills, furniture, clothes and white goods for sale, art drop-in sessions and courses which can help with things such as applying for jobs or improving people’s proficiency in English.

The charity says it has recently seen unprecedented demand for its services, with almost 10,000 people coming through the doors each month as the cost of living crisis continues to squeeze household budgets.

What has been said about the fund-raising football match?

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Andria Stylianou, Shoosmiths trainee solicitor, said: “The Shoosmiths Manchester charity committee are extremely proud to support Mustard Tree; an incredible charity in the heart of Manchester that seeks to create opportunities for people, whilst aiming to combat poverty, inequality and homelessness.

“One of Mustard Tree’s key values is ensuring dignity is upheld for all, which resonated with the Manchester charity committee on our visit to their HQ.

“Seeing the operations of Mustard Tree first hand demonstrated how integral and impactful their values are, which played a part in choosing them as our charity partner. We look forward to a fun event ahead but most importantly supporting Mustard Tree and contributing to their fantastic work.”

A family fun day including a celebrity football match will raise money for Mustard TreeA family fun day including a celebrity football match will raise money for Mustard Tree
A family fun day including a celebrity football match will raise money for Mustard Tree

Jack Barton, Mustard Tree communications manager, said: “Our charity has seen an unprecedented rise in need since we kept our doors open during the Covid-19 pandemic. From providing crisis support during the height of lockdown to focusing on homelessness prevention since restrictions were lifted, we are now supporting more people than ever through training, debt advice, vocational courses and access to low-cost food, furniture and clothing.

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“Having the support of Shoosmiths enables Mustard Tree to help more people in more meaningful ways, and we’d like to thank them for all their support in helping our charity combat poverty and prevent homelessness across Manchester and Salford.”