Starlets add names to donor register

The club has a strong partnership with Anthony Nolan and in March this year Anfield played host to a unique event which encouraged people to come forward as potential life-saving donors.

Hundreds of volunteers turned out to give a saliva sample and join the bone marrow register on the day, as the likes of Luis Suarez, Brendan Rodgers and Lucas Leiva showed their support for the scheme.

Following on from that, last week, players from the Reds' U21 and U18 squads pledged their support after watching a poignant presentation given by Jo Buckton, Anthony Nolan's regional mentor.

Liverpool goalkeeper Brad Jones and his partner Dani Lawrence have been instrumental in forging the bond between LFC and Anthony Nolan after Brad lost his son Luca (below) to leukaemia in November 2011.

The pair were on hand to oversee the event at Anfield earlier this year and Dani joined the Academy starlets last week as they signed up for the register.

She told Liverpoolfc.com: "We have been overwhelmed by the support we have had from Liverpool Football Club and in particular the response from the Academy players.

"After a moving 30-minute presentation, giving the facts about how easy it is to donate blood, bone marrow and organs, a majority of the U21 and U18 players applied for the Anthony Nolan bone marrow register and many registered as blood and organ donors.

"We lost Luca age six to leukaemia in 2011. He received a bone marrow transplant, but unfortunately this was unsuccessful.

"Although the cancer came back, the bone marrow transplant still gave us priceless extra time with him and we are eternally grateful to his donor.

"Having to come to terms with our loss is still very difficult, but having the support of the club and knowing that Luca's story has inspired these young men to sign up means a lot to Brad and myself and we are very grateful to the club and the players for the support they have shown."

Anthony Nolan has nearly 470,000 people on the register but can still only provide a suitable donor to around half of the people in need.

If you would like to join, you can sign up online at www.anthonynolan.org/spit. 

"We are planning future events with the club and we hope that other clubs may follow our example and educate their young players about how they can save a life and be a cure for someone with blood cancer," continued Dani.

"Anthony Nolan particularly want to recruit young men aged 16-30, as they are the most likely to be chosen as donors, yet account for just 12 per cent of the register. Because of this, the Academy has been an ideal place to recruit lifesaving donors."