You might have been a bit confused if you headed down to Nando’s recently, as POSH players swapped their football boots for oven gloves. Yes, POSH and Nando’s – two great things about our city – joined forces in the aid of a local charity.
Members of the Peterborough United squad put their cooking skills to the test on March 5, after being signed up by Nando’s to feed the people of the city. The players followed in the footsteps of other sporting teams (the Huddersfield Giants and the Northampton Saints) by taking over the popular restaurant for the evening.
ESP went along to the event to make sure there was no dribbling in the kitchen (sorry, I couldn’t help myself!). It was a great night with plenty of football banter, delicious food and lots of money raised for one of the club’s chosen charities, Sue Ryder. It was particularly nice to see a few children smiling ear to ear as they had photos taken with their favourite players.
We grabbed a few words with the Press Officer for POSH, Phil Adlam, who told us – “This should bring in a lot of money for Sue Ryder. We’ve packed out Nando’s – which is great for any restaurant midweek. We’ve asked the 150 attendees to make a £3 donation each, but some have donated a lot more.”
Phil continued – “The club has done a lot of quirky fundraising events this year. Joe Dent (Club Photographer) shaved his hair and Posh legend David Farrell bleached his, and now we’re here at Nando’s – cooking, taking people to their tables and working the tills. We’re basically doing everything the staff would usually do.”
We also had an exclusive chat with Club Captain Tommy Rowe, who said – “We’ve all had a fabulous time and it’s for a great cause. The players have been looking forward to taking over Nando’s for the evening. It is a personal favourite of the majority of the squad, so to get the chance to cook on the grills is an exciting opportunity. It is a great way of raising money for the Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice and for us to see our supporters.”
To hear what Tommy had to say on the night, to see the players in action in the kitchen, and to hear some customer comments on the food cooked by the Peterborough United squad … check out our video below.
We’ll have more in the April issue of ESP – so if you were there, grab a copy and look out for your photo!
Mikey Clarke
Photos: Chris Brudenell for ESP Magazine
Video: Lorenzo Monteforte for ESP Magazine
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