Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Hard man really is a Diamond geezer
Vinnie Jones signed top to be auctioned
One of Hollywood’s most notorious hard men has shown his softer side by backing the Airdrieonians Supporters Trust and pulling on a Diamonds shirt.
‘Snatch’ actor and former footballer Vinnie Jones is the latest celebrity to get behind the Trust’s fundraising campaign for a new sensory room at the Excelsior Stadium - following in the footsteps of A-lister Tom Hanks, Star Wars star Mark Hamill and comedian Ricky Gervais.
The cash will go towards creating the Diamond Sensory Room for kids with autism in a joint venture between the club, the stadium and the Trust - with a £10,000 fundraising target set for the room.
And in a unique twist, the Mark Allison sponsored Diamonds top worn by the ‘ Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ actor was paid for by a Motherwell fan.
Davie Swan had always been interested in unique football tops, and took a keen interest in Mark’s story as his own dad lost his life to cancer.
However, after purchasing an Allison top the 43-year-old kindly decided to donate the top to the Trust to auction off.
And Davie admits it’s surreal to see a famous face wearing the top that he bought, but just hopes it can bring in a bit of extra cash for a good cause,
He said: “I had been following Mark’s story.
“I didn’t know him personally, but I knew of him. He was into designer trainers and Adidas shoes like me.
“So when I saw that Airdrie had put his face on the top I thought it was a great thing.
“I ordered one, and at the time they were out of stock.
“By the time they came in I thought it could be better used if I gave it back to the club.
“I thought it would be put in a raffle and they might make a bit of money back on it. “I didn’t imagine anything like this. “The first I heard of it was when Dougy Allsop (Airdrie’s commercial manager) told me that Vinnie Jones would be signing my top, and I just thought it was a great idea. “Hopefully that helps them out a bit.” Ross Owen again used his celebrity links to tie up another big name to sign the top.
Ross sent a message to Jones, who follows him on Twitter, asking if he would be up for getting involved - and he immediately got back to him with a yes.
He told him to drop the top off at his LA home - and now he is the latest Diamond geezer to back the Trust.
Radio show host Owen added: “Hopefully this top can do as well as the Tom Hanks top and fetch four figures.”