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Marcel Desailly with 3ft Fred!

The great French World Cup winner Marcel Desailly was happy to pose in front of a special Fred Keenor display laid on by the fundraising committee.
 
Marcel, who won the Champions League with Marseille and AC Milan and league titles in Italy and England with Chelsea, was in
Cardiff recently and attended the Football Association of Wales awards’ dinner.
 
He won a fantastic 116 caps for France and Trust chair Tim Hartley managed to have a brief chat in French with Marcel.

Last month we showed you progress on the 3ft statue of FA Cup winning legend Fred Keenor created by artist Roger Andrews.
 
It’s now been finished and gives fans a good idea of what the final tribute outside the Cardiff City Stadium will eventually look like?

Fred Keenor 3ft with Roger Andrews

The statue formed part of an exhibition on Fred Keenor at the Football Association of Wales’ awards dinner which members of the fundraising committee put on. The committee is now arranging a suitable location to display the three-footer. 

The final statue of Fred Keenor will stand around 8ft 6ins high resting on a plinth on a triangular piece of land opposite the Gate 3 entrance into the stadium and because of its location will be seen from Leckwith Road.
 
Roger, who is from Llantwit Major, created the Sir Tasker Watkins statue  outside the Millennium Stadium.
 
Donations to the appeal fund can be made through the Co-operative Bank:
Account name: –   Fred Keenor Statue Fund or FKSF
Account no    65392368
Sort Code     08-92-99

Cheques can also be sent c/o CCST to PO Box 4254, Cardiff, CF14 8FD. Please add the words “Fred Keenor Appeal” on the top of the envelope.

We’ve been asked to mention that several former Cardiff City stars will be presented at a book signing  in the stadium Club Shop between 9.30am and 10.30am, before tomorrow’s Bristol City game.

Cardiff City – 100 Years of Professional Football (£15.99) has been written by sports journalist and City fan Terry Grandin.

Several former Bluebirds – Don Murray, Gary Bell, Derek Showers, Roger Gibbins, Damon Searle and Bobby Woodruff – will be present to sign copies.

Enjoy a buffet curry night out – and £10 from every £25 ticket sold goes straight to the Fred Keenor Statue Fund.

The venue for the evening, organised by City businessman Dilwar Ali, is the Rhiwbina Recreation Club in Lon-y-Dail, Cardiff, on Thursday, November 4th, starting at 7pm. Just 140 places are available

Cardiff City has kindly agreed to allow at least two of its first team squad to attend with the players names confirmed nearer the event. An auction and raffle will also be staged on the night. Dilwar Ali, who runs the Nahin Spice Centre in Cardiff, won South Wales Echo Food & Drink Awards on two different occasions. He has already backed the appeal by donating a signed Cardiff City shirt which raised £510 at the Ricky Tomlinson evening.

The menu, which has vegetarian options, is papadoms with onion & mangoes chutney.Starters: Chicken Tikka, Vegetable Roll, Pakara with salad, Mint Sauce.

Main Courses: Chicken Bhoona (medium),Lamb Pasanda (very mild).
Vegetable Curry (medium). Also Basmati, Pilau Rice,Naan.
There’s a licensed bar and plenty of car parking.

David Craig, Project Manager for the Fred Keenor Appeal Fund, said: “We’re delighted to be holding a curry night in aid and thank Dilwar for his ongoing support for the appeal. It’s sure to be a great night with some excellent food.
“The club has promised to make players available for the evening so there will also be the chance for fans to have their pictures taken and get autographs.
“As just 140 tickets are available, I would urge fans to book and pay for their seats as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.This will our last major fundraiser of 2010 so we’re hoping to raise a substantial amount for the appeal.”

Places on a first come, first served basis can be booked by sending a cheque payable to the Fred Keenor Statue Fund to the Nahin Spice Centre at 314 Caerphilly Road, Cardiff, CF14 4NT. Please include your names and address and indicate if you require a vegetarian meal.

Paul Bullock has asked us to remind Trust members that his son Matthew is running the Toronto marathon on Sunday, October 17th, to raise funds for the Fred Keenor Statue appeal.

You can pledge directly to Matthew through his email address matty_bullock@yahoo.co.uk or contact Fred Keenor Statue Fund Project Manager David Craig on d.craig43@ntlworld.com. Please support this worthwhile effort.