England international and former Manchester City star Raheem Sterling‘s charity has recently become a Patrons and donor of the HideOut Youth Zone in Gorton.
Yet another reminder that Raz is an absolutely top lad.
The Raheem Sterling Foundation was officially announced as a partner of HideOUT YZ in the East Manchester district on Monday, 24 October, with the footballer’s organisation echoing the vital Gorton‘s site values: “working diligently to bring inspiring changes to young people who need it most.”
We are committed with @HideOut_YZ to improve social mobility for young people and provide guidance to break down barriers, secure opportunities and access better education.
In the current times of need, organisations like HideOut are more valuable than ever before.
— The Raheem Sterling Foundation (@RSfoundation) October 24, 2022
The youth charity and community centre’s aim is to provide young people with a safe space to participate in sports and other activities; make new friends, get inspired or simply relax.
While sport plays a big role in HideOut YZ’s youth community – hence Sterling‘s connection to the initiative – its central purpose revolves around “keeping children and young adults off the street” and reminding them of the importance of learning a skill.
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HideOut caters to people aged 8-19 and up to 25 for those with additional needs, introducing individuals to over 20 different creative and sporting activities every night for just 50p — a vital local resource, especially when schools are closed.
Beyond just keeping young people busy and entertained, the centre also offers employability and enterprise support, helping Manchester‘s youth develop their entrepreneurial skills, find apprenticeships and pursue valuable qualifications, both academic and professional.
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For instance, to celebrate the partnership, Sterling’s foundation teamed up with talkSPORT to launch a ‘Broadcast Academy’, which will help deliver skills and knowledge to those looking to go into broadcast media after they leave education.
You love to see it.
🔍We're looking for 6 young people to take part in the year-long project!
⚽ age 14-19 ⚽ interest in football ⚽ interest in a career in media ⚽ be a #HideOutYZ member
The foundation’s Chair of Trustees Clive Ellington said in a statement: “We are proud to be announced as Patron of HideOut youth zone.
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“Its vision and values supporting young people match that of the Foundation, and we look forward to working closely with them helping to educate, inspire and empower the young people of Manchester.”
Located next to Gorton Park, the facility opened in 2020 and is part of the national OnSide Network charity, originally founded back in 2008. Since then, 14 youth zones have been set up across the UK.
Gorton’s state-of-the-art HideOUT YZ is the most recent to have been opened and cost £6.6 million to build, signifying a massive investment in the Greater Manchester area.
Despite leaving 0161 for a return to London life, it’s clear that Sterling still has a deep affection for Manchester and having put down roots here for seven years – not to mention understanding the importance of having outlets like these at a young age – he’ll always be an honorary Manc in our eyes.
If you or a young person in your family is looking for somewhere to keep busy, stay active, learn or simply keep out of trouble, the HideOut Youth Zone in Gorton is a safe haven full ran by wonderful people.
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The youth centre is open for seniors (13-19) on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, while the junior club (8-12) runs on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There is also the Sunday Club for both age groups.
You can find the full list of opening times and information for those with additional needs HERE.
Featured Image — HideOut Youth Zone/Raheem Sterling Foundation (via Twitter)
Sport
Luke Littler is challenging amateurs to beat him at darts as part of a live Netflix event
Danny Jones
In an unprecedented new sports event in the world of streaming, North West sports star Luke Little is offering people the chance to try and win a game of darts against him live on Netflix.
Best of all, he and the entertainment platform have put up a huge grand prize for anyone who can beat the Warrington wonder.
So, for any of you who fancy yourselves as Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor reincarnated when stepping up to the oche down at the local, or if you’re simply bold enough to throw your name in the hat, you’ll want to pay attention for this one…
Announcing the special one-off sporting event on Netflix later this year, Luke Littler has issued the call-out to see if anyone can best him in a game of 501 in front of millions watching at home.
Quite literally the opportunity of a lifetime for fans of the arrows, this exclusive livestream is like nothing that the media giants have done before.
Having dipped their toes into the likes of live boxing fights over the past few years, they’ve definitely got a few live events under their belt, but this exciting and crucially interactive series of matches feels like something genuinely new for Netflix.
Most notably of all, using the name of the popular darts game played not only live on telly at competitions throughout the year but also at countless pubs across the country to set the prize fee, a prospective winner could potentially win £501k this autumn.
Imagine: half a million pounds for one (admittedly very tough) game of darts.
The only major caveat aside from, you know, him being an absolute phenom and already a serial winner is he also happens to be in the form of his life – his words and virtually everyone else’s.
"This is the best version of myself… I'm playing SO WELL!"
Luke Littler listens to some of the records he's broken in his ridiculous World Matchplay campaign 🤯 pic.twitter.com/EVQSrHxSHf
Having smashed Gerwyn Price to defend his World Matchplay Darts title on Sunday evening, cruising to an 18-9 victory with so many 100+ visits and finishes that he broke the tournament’s record average, which has stood since 2010, anyone who does come up against him is currently praying for a miracle.
Price himself told Sky Sports that the youngster’s performance looked ‘effortless’, quipping, “I hope there’s nobody else like him coming through!”
Still only 19, the local lad is the toughest of tasks for even the best on the pro circuit, but if you still somehow fancy your chances, heats will be taking place in Manchester and London, where the top 20 players will get their shot at the man himself on Friday, 30 October.
You can find out all the important information and sign up right HERE.
For now, why not see just how good Littler is playing at the minute and watch back his highlights from a record-breaking final this weekend?
Not that he’s ever truly cooled off, but he really is on fire at the minute.
Manchester City auctioning off exclusive ‘artefacts’ from Pep Guardiola’s office
Danny Jones
Manchester City are set to auction off a limited number of used and/or signed items previously owned by legendary football manager Pep Guardiola himself.
The iconic Catalan head coach may have now left the club, but it’s fair to say that supporters are still grieving the bittersweet goodbye – and if you’re one of them, then this might be a good way of clinging on to him and the memories.
Teaming up with MatchWornShirt, an authentic collectables company that deals in memorabilia used by the sporting stars themselves, fans will soon be able to own a ‘piece of Pep’ if they so wish as part of this very special merchandise dump.
So, if you’re a collector of signed or match-worn merch, here’s a taster of what’s up for grabs:
Several items from @PepTeam's office are up for auction 🤝
Yes, should they be willing to put in the winning bid, Blues can genuinely own some of Guardiola‘s office knick-nacks, a tactics board and notes scribed on by the man himself, as well as his actual chair and even his whistle.
Does that count as kissing him? That’s not for us to say…
There is more standard fare, of course, such as worn training kits, photo frames, programmes and other printed media – almost all of which are signed by the 55-year-old.
On the other hand, if you’re so inclined to go for the super rare stuff, you can even buy his desk lamp and go-to coffee cups; whatever floats your boat.
The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss left Etihad Stadium this summer after 10 years as a Cityzen – with the club even releasing a dedicated ‘Decade Collection’ in his honour – and it now looks as though he could be set for his next job.
His former assistant turned replacement and ex-U23s/Elite Development Squad (EDS), Enzo Maresca, is now in place and making his first impressions on the City squad; safe to say it’ll take some work to leave the same lasting legacy as his mentor.
As for the auction, the club have labelled these exclusive trinkets as “artefacts”, promising that you won’t get many other opportunities, if any, to claim this kind of ‘KeePepsake’.
Meanwhile, in other MCFC news, the City Football Group (CFG) are taking steps to ensure local fans have easier access to matchday tickets with a new postcode lottery, of sorts.
Danny Jones -
26th October 2022 
