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DS Domingo's are a newly-formed football
club playing in the Merseyside charity circuit against well-established
sides. The idea to start the club came after a group of friends
from the Liverpool ECHO played an informal friendly against
Bramley Moore in Spring 2008.
Realising the opportunity to raise
funds for charity by joining the friendly league, Down Syndrome
Liverpool organiser Thomas Regan and his friend, Echo journalist
Greg O'Keeffe, decided to launch the club. They were quickly
joined by several of their friends across Merseyside, with
ages ranging from 21 to 45, and had a healthy squad of players.
Instead of usual subs, each player
contributes after every game and the collected money is donated
to DS Liverpool. Meanwhile, squad members have already taken
it on themselves to help raise funds by securing sponsorship,
with midfielder Adam Smolarz-Lambert helping to get a generous
donation from the Beetham organisation, and training equipment
from Nationwide.
With the financial support and formal
sponsorship of DS Liverpool, who paid for the side's distinctive
purple strip, DS Domingo's went about organising more than
twenty fixtures for the 2008/09 season.
The name was chosen to incorporate
the Down Syndrome Liverpool title and Saint Domingo's F.C.
- famously the club from which Everton F.C. was formed.
Thomas Regan said: "Not only does
it provide us with a regular donation it spreads the word
of Down Syndrome throughout the city. This can only raise
our charity's profile and subsequently benefit our members.
“Our players work in a various different careers and
can all contribute to the charity, not only on the field but
with sponsorship and publicity.”
The team lost the majority of their
early fixtures, although none heavily, and recorded their
first win against Cheshire Rovers earlier this month.
See DS Liverpool website for scores
and match details, along with news of club functions and charity
nights.
If you are interested in playing
DS Domingo's please contact Greg on 07970187649 or Thomas
on 07752491627.
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