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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
National
Sarah Scott

Line of Duty's Martin Compston donates money to help West Belfast football club

Line of Duty star Martin Compston has stepped in to help a Belfast football club with their fundraising.

Belfast Celtic Young Men, Ladies and Cubs FC were left devastated when some of their equipment was trashed in Falls Park last year.

At the end of last year, the council approved an application for installation of a storage container by the club to keep their equipment safe.

READ MORE: Belfast Celtic FC to get storage container at Falls Park after vandalism

But with the storage container costing up to £2,000, Club Secretary Ryan Whelan told Belfast Live they started a GoFundMe page last week to help raise the funds needed.

They were then overjoyed when Line of Duty star Martin Compston stepped in to donate towards the storage container. And it's not the first time the TV star has been kind enough to help out the club with their fundraising.

"We keep equipment in the Falls Park and for the last few years it was constantly getting damaged and costing our club a lot of money," said Ryan.

"Belfast Live ran a story for us the last time it happened and it was last time all our equipment was broke so we were at breaking point really. With the story it put a bit of pressure on the council and they have agreed we can put a storage container in.

"But with a storage container it costs money and it's at our own cost, so we put up a GoFundMe page last week and we were trying to get people to donate towards it. We thought originally it was going to be £1,000 but it's actually more like double that.

"One member of our ladies teams, Nuala Rafferty reached out to Martin Compston, he had sponsored our team before, he had sponsored our girls and bought them new kits, all three of them from Line of Duty.

"So she reached out to Martin to let him know what was going on and he decided he wanted to donate £250 so he put it on the page the other day."

Ryan added: "It is unreal to be honest, we have not met him yet from the last sponsorship and he is still willing to help out where possible. We have three framed top here to go to him and we are hoping that he is returning in the next few months and we can meet up with him. He did write back and said next time he is over he will come up and watch the games. Then we can present him with the tops.

"To see him reaching out, especially since he is not from here he is from Scotland, here means something to him if he is reaching out and helping out local teams.

"A £250 donation to us, regardless of what it is for is outstanding. Clubs like us, we are non profit so donations like that help us run the club as well."

Ryan said the next time Martin is over they hope they can showcase exactly what they do.

Fitzys 24 hour conviences tore on the Falls Road donated £410 to bring it up to £1,000 and two other competition pages - Ats Us Nai and Big L's - also donated £100 each to the fundraiser.

"What he has done is unreal, I think it is just he feels a part of this community now," Ryan added.

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