Reds help tsunami appeal

Shirts, jumpers and training kit belonging to the likes of Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Pepe Reina and Kenny Dalglish were supplied to Red Cross employees at Melwood on Friday morning and will go towards helping to provide money for the relief effort in Japan.

The Red Cross will sell the items at Red Cross stores throughout the north west, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man, while also auctioning off signed memorabilia later this year.

Sue Ratcliff, the British Red Cross retail field manager, said: "It's a very exciting day for us as Liverpool Football Club have very generously donated thousands of items of football kit for us to raise money for our Japanese Tsunami Appeal.

"The club phoned us to ask us if we'd be interested in taking these donations to raise money - and we're always very, very grateful for any donations.

"We're going to sell this stock in our retail outlets to raise as much funds as we possibly can for the people of Japan.

"At the moment there is an ongoing recovery programme in Japan, which includes healthcare, emotional and physiological support. A lot of people lost their homes and these funds will go towards helping build new homes.

"We'll be giving cash grants for the people most in need and this will be going on for months and even years.

"We're extremely, extremely grateful to Liverpool FC and we'll do everything we possibly can to help these vulnerable people in Japan.

"These items are quite rare and you're not going to be able to buy them in the shops, so we're hoping to raise a lot of money for the people of Japan."

The items will be available in Red Cross stores from June 13 and include 360 players shirts, some of which are match-worn, and hundreds of jackets, sweatshirts, and shorts.

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre said: "Our hearts go out to everyone in Japan who has suffered as a result of widespread destruction caused by the tsunami earlier this year. 

"We are grateful for the opportunity to work with the Red Cross to help raise funds that will contribute towards rebuilding the country's economic and social infrastructure.

"As a global brand we are very proud to have supporters from all over the world and are pleased that the Red Cross is able to use our merchandise to raise valuable funds to help Japan recover from this disaster."

Following the tsunami in March, the Japanese Red Cross has sent 230 teams of more than 1,200 staff and volunteers to the region, many of whom are trained doctors and nurses.

They have supplied those affected with first aid, emergency healthcare and psychological support, as well as assisting the authorities with evacuations near nuclear plants and staffing shelters for evacuees.

LFC Community Manager Bill Bygroves added: "All of us were deeply moved by the pictures we saw following the tsunami and it left us feeling helpless.

"But Ian Ayre came up with the idea of taking the kit and giving them to the Red Cross to raise money. It's a wonderful gesture.

"We want to express our genuine unity and solidarity with Japan in the midst of their horrific pain and grief. This is only a small gesture, but it's better than nothing.

"Last year, we sent 70 boxes of shirts to Oxfam and we've sent kit out to South Africa, Kenya, Afghanistan and, later this year, Malawi.

"It's a wonderful thing this and other clubs do, and I feel it's our duty and privilege to do what we can to help."