'We are so grateful' - hat-trick of charities thank Leeds United striker Patrick Bamford for huge raffle donation

The England international gave away his limited-edition centenary shirt from the Whites' Championship-winning season along with Leeds United inspired registration plates.

Almost 2,500 participated in the raffle which raised vital funds for three charities with whom Bamford has previously been involved - Andy’s Man Club, Eco Schools and the Leeds United Foundation.

"I think with the platform that footballers have got, yes our main job is doing the business on the pitch, but there's so much more we can do off the pitch," he told the Yorkshire Evening Post.

"I saw on social media Izzy Brown (former Leeds loanee) had helped a guy out with mental health just by letting him pick up the phone to speak to him. That just shows that everyone has a place and everyone can play a part no matter what it is.

"That kind of sets the tone for every footballer. The way that Marcus Rashford had such an influence on providing food for kids, I thought there's no reason why I can't speak out and raise awareness."

The winner, Lee Copping, was chosen at random on New Year’s Eve and earlier this week met Bamford at Elland Road to collect his prize, with the charities all represented.

Andy Greenway from the Andy’s Man Club said: “I want to say a massive thanks to Leeds United and England star man Patrick Bamford for choosing us to benefit from his raffle - raising the profile of ANDYSMANCLUB even more, with an amazing £10,000 making its way to us allowing us to grow even further across the UK and open more venues to support more and more men.

“It was only right that we sent our very own star man Alfie to meet Patrick at Elland Road to say thank you on behalf of the charity. Alfie is one of the reasons why ANDYSMANCLUB exists having lost his uncle five years ago, Alfie is such a catalyst to us wanting to reach out to as many men as we possibly can and to have the support of both Patrick Bamford and Leeds United is a huge part of us continuing to do just this.”

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, CEO of environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy which runs the Eco-Schools programme in England, said: “We are so grateful for Patrick’s support for our work with children and young people.

“Eco-Schools is a fantastic way for children to learn and take action and the work they do in school is helping to reduce waste, cut carbon and improve their environment. We need the next generation to do a better job of looking after our planet and Eco-Schools helps them develop the understanding and skills, they will need to make a real difference.”

Leeds United Foundation CEO John Mallalieu added: “In recent years the club has been incredibly supportive of the Foundation, from the ownership to the fans and even the players. Not only do all the players give up their time to support our wide range of initiatives, but now to have Patrick provide financial support is absolutely outstanding.

“We look forward to working closely with the club to look at the best way we can invest this donation into our programmes to best serve the community.”