African footballers to get old Rooney shirts

Unwanted Everton FC shirts bearing the name "Rooney" are being sent to young footballers in Africa, it was announced today.

The club was left with £66,000 worth of kit after striker Wayne Rooney's last-minute transfer to Manchester United.

The shirts will instead be donated to Cafod, the Catholic aid agency, which is helping former child soldiers in Liberia to reintegrate into society.

The project is run by Cafod's partner agency Don Bosco Homes.

Its director Allan Lincoln said: "The kids are passionate about football here.
"It plays a key role in their rehabilitation because it helps alleviate depression and teaches valuable team skills.

"Football also allows them to have fun and regain some of the childhood that was so brutally taken away from them.

"The kids are huge Rooney fans and followed his success closely during the recent European Championships.

"Many of them have very little clothing so won't care what colour Rooney shirt they get."

Everton spokesman Ian Ross said: "Losing such a precocious young talent was bitterly disappointing but, by donating what is self-evidently redundant stock to such a worthwhile cause, perhaps good will come out of bad.

"CAFOD do an enormous amount of remarkable humanitarian work and we, as a club, are just happy to help out.

"I think Wayne will be happy to learn of it."