A leading Hampshire IT solutions company has raised £2,000 for three local charities at its family-friendly football day.
The fun-filled sporting event, hosted by Fareham-based Matrix IT, was held at The OnSite Group stadium, home of AFC Portchester. It raised an impressive £2,000 for baby loss charity, Sands, palliative care provider, Rowans Hospice, and Walking with the Wounded, a charity which supports ex-servicemen and women.
Going head-to-head in teams of 10, Matrix IT took on The Rest of the World, and, narrowly beating Matrix by two goals to one, the “away” team managed to take home the glory!
A number of youth teams also got involved and took part in some organised friendly games, while AFC Portchester mascot, Roly the Goalie, entertained the crowds with a penalty shootout.
Throughout the day, visitors enjoyed a true community-focused event, with members of the Matrix team hosting a face painting and glitter tattoo stall, as well as a bar, food stalls, arts and crafts, and a bouncy castle.
A raffle was also held, and proceeds were split equally between the three local charities. Prizes included:
- A Ferrari hat signed by F1 driver Charles Leclerc.
- Three bottles of sparkling wine from Hambledon Vineyard
- A Quob Park Estate, Hotel & Spa vineyard tour and afternoon tea from Quob Park.
- A 22/23 Season signed Portsmouth FC shirt from Portsmouth FC.
- Four-ball golf at Cams Hall Estate Golf Club.
- A luxury chocolate hamper from Compass Accountants.
- Eleven Australia hair goodies from Wonderful Brands.
- Bottomless prosecco, wine, or beer afternoon tea for two at The Tea Party, Lee-On-Solent from Penta Precision Engineering
- XL Paddleboard rental for up to 8 people from AT Jones
- Kayak taster session for up to 4 people from AT Jones
- Signed Portsmouth FC shorts from Portsmouth FC
- Pre-match hospitality including a drinks package for 10 guests at Havant Rugby
Isabella Snyder, Strategic Partnerships Manager from Sands, expressed her gratitude. She said:
“We’d like to say a huge thank you to the Matrix IT team for their brilliant fundraising efforts – it is because of initiatives like this that we can continue our life-saving work and support more and more people who have been affected by pregnancy loss or the death of a baby.”
For Matrix IT, the fundraising football day formed part of the company’s wider plans to give back to the community.
Louise Gascoigne, Operations Director of Matrix, said:
“We would like to say a huge thanks to everybody who made this charity football day a huge success, from our amazing team to customers and friends who played for The Rest of The World and the youth teams. It has been wonderful to have the opportunity to raise funds for three charities that are looking after people in our community.
“We strive to make a positive and lasting impact on society, and this event was just one example of our commitment. We are keen to share more of our fundraising initiatives in the future.”
Matrix IT aims to help businesses succeed through great technology solutions. The company strives for continuous improvement and employs the best technically qualified team of experts to deliver excellent customer service time and time again.
As a trusted strategic IT partner to a wide range of businesses and in-house teams, its goal is to make IT effortless, allowing its customers to develop, grow and succeed.
