A driver who struck an 11-year-old girl in Radcliffe, then drove off and left her lying in the road with catastrophic injuries, has been jailed.
Ruby Cropper died after being hit by the car driven by Andrew Cairns on 10 August 2020.
Cairns, of Rupert Street, Radcliffe, was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving at a trial at The Hilton Nightingale Crown Court in January, and has today been sentenced to five years in jail.
He will also be disqualified from driving for seven years.
Ruby’s parents have spoken of their heartbreak, saying their ‘world ended’ when they saw their daughter ‘unconscious and dying’.
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They also said that Ruby’s organs were donated, adding: “Our brave, selfless girl saved three people with her kidneys and liver.”
New Road in Radcliffe, where Ruby Cropper was struck. Credit: Google Maps
Ruby had been walking along the pavement with a friend, and was struck by Cairns’ Suzuki Alto while crossing New Road in .
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Eye witnesses say he was travelling at ‘around 50 to 60mph’ in a 30mph zone.
They also reported him overtaking cars and cutting across traffic before hitting Ruby.
The young girl was left with severe head injuries, and died in hospital two days after the collision.
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A post-mortem examination concluded that her death was ‘primarily due to brain injury and attributed this to the collision’.
Cairns handed himself into the police, denying that he was driving dangerously but admitting to travelling at excess speed.
PC Laura Drew, a forensic collision reconstruction officer employed by Greater Manchester Police, filed a report that stated: “Witnesses estimate Mr Cairns speed was between 50mph and 60mph.
Andrew Cairns, who left Ruby Cropper lying in the road.
“It is not known as to what exact path or speed Miss Cropper ran at, however research shows her time in the road to be between 0.8 and 1.3 seconds. Mr Cairns could not have avoided this collision at the speed he was travelling.
“However, had Mr Cairns been travelling at the speed limit, Miss Cropper would have had time to pass across the front of his vehicle without him having to take any evasive action.”
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Lead investigator, PC Phil Drummond, from GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “For reasons only known to himself, Cairns chose to drive in a way that would inevitably end in disaster.
“His reckless actions had the most severe of consequences; the life of a young, innocent girl ended and a family torn apart.
“As quickly as he took Ruby’s life, he fled the scene without any thought for her, leaving decent members of the public to rush to her aid.
“While Cairns admitted to causing Ruby’s death at an earlier hearing, he failed to recognise and take responsibility for his sustained, despicable course of driving.
Cairns stood trial at the Hilton Nightingale Crown Court in Manchester. Credit: Google Maps
“Furthermore, only six months later and while on bail, he continued to drive without regard for public safety and was caught speeding, showing a complete and utter lack of remorse.
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“Thankfully, 17 months after the collision, a jury saw through Cairns’ inconsistent account and rightly convicted him of causing Ruby’s death by driving dangerously.
“I wish to thank Ruby’s family for their patience and compassion throughout the entire investigation. I hope this serves to bring them some level of closure.
“Furthermore, I would like to take the opportunity to commend the efforts of the members of public who not only aided Ruby until paramedics arrived but furthermore, appeared in court to give evidence, ultimately reliving their horrific memories.
“I hope this serves to reassure our communities and a reminder those who seek to put them in danger – the Serious Collision Investigation Unit is dedicated to our work and will continue to prosecute them.”
Statements from Ruby Cropper’s parents
Shelley Booth (Ruby’s mum): “From the very moment I received the call from my husband telling me that our beautiful daughter Ruby had been run over, life has never been the same.
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“The shock of seeing her unconscious and dying in front of me is the worst thing I have ever had to deal with in my life.
“I couldn’t understand how my gorgeous, happy girl, who would help anyone, had been run over and left in the road, and that the driver didn’t have the heart to stop and help her, not even ring an ambulance.
“Our world ended at that point. We had lost our ray of sunshine. Our girl was always positive, a kind, caring and funny girl who had her whole life ahead of her.
“We will never get to see her prom, her first day at college and at university. We won’t see her get married or become a mum. We will never see what life she would have had.
“No sentence will ever be enough, as we have to spend the rest of our lives without our beautiful, kind, caring and funny girl. She was the brightest light in the darkest room. We miss her so much.
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“Ruby would have died on the 10 August but, because she was an organ donor, we had until the early hours of 12 August to say goodbye.
“We lay with her and played her favourite music, took her hand and foot prints, told her how much we loved her and were there until her last breath.
“Our brave, selfless girl saved three people with her kidneys and her liver. They have frozen her heart valves for possible matches in the future.”
Ian Cropper (Ruby’s dad): “After it all happened, I was angry for a long time. I didn’t care about anything, life just became pointless and my reason for being wasn’t apparent anymore.
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“Every day merged into one and they felt endless – no work, no sleep, no one to talk to that could understand the way I was feeling – I was lost in my own bubble of anger that I couldn’t allow anyone in to, it was too hard.
“Ruby was my whole world, she was my best friend and absolute love of my life – Ruby made me the person I am. She made me a Daddy, she made me see the world differently, she made me strong when I didn’t feel it, she made me happy when I was sad – she was my EVERYTHING and it’s hard to put into words the loss I feel.
“I am not sure there are enough words in this world to try and describe a world without Ruby in it.”
Featured image: GMP
News
Manchester United announce record revenue despite on-pitch struggles
Danny Jones
Manchester United have declared a record revenue figure for the full 2025 fiscal term, even with their poor performances on the pitch over the past 12 months.
They may still be a continually struggling Premier League side who seem to be in a perpetual state of transition, but they remain nothing short of a global giant in terms of sporting brands.
Yes, despite Man United recording two of the worst finishes in domestic history in the previous two campaigns and head coach Ruben Amorim having already overseen the worst start to a top-flight season in the modern era following the defeat on derby day, the football club has reached a monetary milestone.
According to their official reports for the fourth and final quarter of the financial year, they brought in a record-breaking £666.5 million throughout 2024/25 – but, as always, it’s more complicated than that.
"There are some tough decisions to be made"
BREAKING: Manchester United have announced record revenues for 2024/25 of £666.5m – but the club still made an overall loss of £33m 🚨 pic.twitter.com/jlQS7SMjJ8
Released on Wednesday, 17 September, Manchester United PLC confirmed that they had managed to record the biggest revenue figures on several fronts despite crashing out of the Europa League, finishing 15th in the table overall and failing to secure a place in any European competition this season.
The first half of Amorim‘s tenure at Old Trafford saw the club’s worst competitive placing since 1973/74, a.k.a. the last time the Red Devils were relegated from the first division.
Nevertheless, a fresh shirt sponsorship agreement with Snapdragon, new brand partnerships with the likes of Coca-Cola, an extension of their contract with travel experience company, SportsBreaks, and numerous other deals saw United achieve a record commercial revenue of £333.3m.
Elsewhere, match revenue was also up and reached new heights, tallying approximately £160.3m in the 12 months leading up to 30 June 2025 – the most they have ever registered when it comes to ticket sales, concessions, and other transactions in and around game days.
Although this number is a reduction of more than 70.8% what they lost last year (£113.2m), there is still plenty of concern among supporters over how money is still not only being spent but moved around.
Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the INEOS board did pay sizeable chunks of MUFC’s debt, which has piled up at an alarming rate in the two decades since the Glazer takeover, but there has still been plenty of borrowing.
In addition to a number of shorter-term loans, there has also been an increased level of amortisation and significant transfer spending this summer, despite being admittedly cash-strapped.
As well as actually having less money to play with over the past 12 months, they are also set to receive less in TV rights and broadcasting revenues this season due to not making it into any European competition, hence why they went on a post-season Asian tour to try and make up for funds lost.
It’s estimated that the business earned a further £8 million from these games, but it’s also worth noting that significant sums have been spent not only on new signings but also on severance fees and redundancy packages, so it’s hard to assess how much this extra injection helped with the fine margins.
While it's good to see that we're paying down our long-term debts, I'm a bit worried about how the club have maybe over-leveraged short-term borrowings. Debt restructure needed imo. pic.twitter.com/LQuUdbzK1h
Divisive CEO and former City Football Group exec, Omar Berrada, wrote in the comments section of the full findings and financial report: “As we settle into the 2025/26 season, we are working hard to improve the club in all areas.
“On the field, we are pleased with the additions we have made to our men’s and women’s first team squads over the summer, as we build for the long term. Off the field, we are emerging from a period of structural and leadership change with a refreshed, streamlined organisation equipped to deliver on our sporting and commercial objectives.”
He adds: “We are also investing [in upgrading] our infrastructure, including completion of the £50m redevelopment of our men’s first team building at Carrington, on time and on budget, following prior investment in our women’s team facilities, to create a world-class environment for our players and staff.
“Meanwhile, planning continues to meet our ambition of developing a new stadium at Old Trafford as part of a transformational regeneration of the surrounding community.
Total Manchester United revenue may be up but they’re about to shell out seismic outlay for their new stadium costs.
Berrada signs off by insistig that for the club to have “generated record revenues during such a challenging year for the club demonstrates the resilience which is a hallmark of Manchester United.
“Our commercial business remains strong as we continue to deliver appealing products and experiences for our fans, and best-in-class value to our partners.”
“As we start to feel the benefits of our cost reduction programme, there is significant potential for improved financial performance, which will, in turn, support our overriding priority: success on the pitch.”
What do you make of Manchester United’s 2024/25 annual report and how it fits into the wider picture/struggles elsewhere around the club?
FIFA confirm new changes to international breaks – and many fans are divided
Danny Jones
Global sporting body FIFA have announced new changes to the annual football calendar and the ever-divisive international breaks, specifically.
It’s fair to say that not everyone is in agreement over the update to what many fans and even players already find a frustrating format.
Put simply, FIFA have revealed that they will be merging the traditional September and October breaks into one extended period of international football from 2026 onwards.
Once again, although the decision has been met with plenty of support, it has also faced just as much, if not potentially even more, resistance.
That's well better. Always thought instead of having 3 short international breaks in autumn we'd be better off having one long one
As detailed by multiple outlets following full confirmation on Monday, 13 September, footy fans are now looking at a combined 16 days of watching national teams in World Cup qualifiers and other fixtures.
While other clubs further down the footballing pyramid will still be able to watch their team, supporters of Premier League sides and several other divisions will see domestic action cease for roughly three weeks when taking into account rest days between international and club fixtures
Besides incorporating more teams into this year’s World Cup (now a 48-team affair) and the still relatively recent advent of the Nations League – which UEFA introduced in the hopes of creating more interest in the much-maligned international breaks – this is one of the biggest changes in some time.
At present, there are typically four breaks: September, October, November and March/April – not including major tournaments themselves.
One criticism of this format has been the stop-start consequence it has on club football, and indeed, struggling to create any real momentum and/or excitement, as well as the impact on form it sometimes has on players both away on national team duty and when they get back to their clubs.
I suppose it’s better than having two different breaks in Sept and the October, and the stop start nature of the club season.
Another big concern these breaks have always been met with is the added risk of fatigue and injury.
Despite being athletes who regularly train to remain at the peak of their physical fitness, the increasingly congested fixture calendar – particularly for those playing in England, with multiple cup competitions, the prospect of European football AND no break over Christmas – continues to push bodies to the limit.
Once again, these new changes to international breaks won’t come into effect until next year, but there are plenty of pros and cons that professionals and supporters alike will continue to debate until the new schedule is implemented.
Daisy Jackson -
17th February 2022 
