A NON-LEAGUE football team today set off on an exciting mid-season tour - ten days in Sri Lanka.

Richmond Mavericks, of the Teesside League, will play four Sri Lankan Premier League teams during the trip. One game, against Saunders SC, will take place in the 25,000-capacity national stadium.

As part of the tour, the team will donate football shirts, goals, and equipment to Sri Lankan children and orphans.

A shirt collection was organised by Chris Snowdon, 23, one of the tourists. Mr Snowdon, who lives in Richmond and works at the Student Loan Company, in Darlington, asked colleagues to donate shirts.

More than 50 shirts were donated, including classic England, Liverpool and Manchester United tops.

An appeal in The Northern Echo also resulted in donations from Hurworth School and other readers.

The Mavericks will take more than 80 shirts.

Mr Snowdon said: "The Sri Lankan children love English football, but genuine replica shirts are very expensive and hard to get hold of over there.

"Hopefully, this will be a good way of saying thanks for hosting our bunch of English footballers. It should be a great ten days and we're grateful to everyone who has donated.

"People in England take football shirts for granted, but it's not that easy over there."

The tour was organised after Andrew Mollitt, one of the club's founders, moved to Sri Lanka last year,.

The Student Loan Company, off Staindrop Road, moves to Lingfield Point in May. Recruitment for the expansion will begin at Christmas.