A football match played in tribute to Jake Sweeney, who died four days after he was assaulted in Caerphilly town centre, has raised more than £6,000 for the 26-year-old’s family.
The Liverpool fan played football for Dynamo Aber and his team took on an Aber Valley All Stars team at Senghenydd RFC on Sunday September 7 in front of more than 800 people.
Mr Sweeney died at the University of Wales Hospital in Cardiff on August 28 and the players came out onto the pitch to the sound of Liverpool anthem You’ll Never Walk Alone.
His step-brothers, Luke, Thomas and 13-year-old Jarod, led the teams out and a two minute silence was followed by the release of red and white balloons by his family and the players.
The captains then laid two bouquets either side of a Dynamo Aber flag.
The players wore Mr Sweeney’s number, 14, which the club plan to retire following their loss.
Organiser Joanne Davies said: “We expected a few hundred but it was beyond what we expected.
“It was a really heartfelt, emotional day for everyone but we did it to share our memories of a young boy who was lost to soon.
“It was all in great spirit and everyone shared their happy memories.
“We are very grateful for the help and donations we received from the community and communities beyond ours.”
Five hundred special red t-shirts were sold, with the Liverbird logo and Mr Sweeney’s name printed on them, creating a sea of red at the match.
A signed Cardiff City shirt and match tickets, a Welsh rugby shirt and books signed by Sam Warburton and signed Aaron Ramsey memorabilia were auctioned and over 160 raffle prizes were donated by individuals and businesses.
Ms Davies said: “The total raised following the sale of t-shirts and money raised from Sunday’s event reached just over £6,000, which will help the family make the final arrangements for Jake and ease some of the financial burden during this truly awful time.”
A Support Jake “Selfie” Facebook page has raised an extra £1,500 while door to door collections have raised £1,700.
Mr Sweeney’s funeral will take place at Thornhill Crematorium on Friday September 26 at 1.30pm, then back at Senghenydd Rugby Club.