Tom Cruise signed shirts help Woburn football club hit target

Two football shirts signed by Tom Cruise have helped a grassroots club meet its fundraising goal.

Last week, Woburn & Wavendon Football Club had to vacate its Bedfordshire sports ground to make way for the Mission: Impossible 7 film crew.

The club decided to ask the production company if Cruise could sign some shirts for a crowdfunding campaign.

Committee member Wes Williams said it was an "amazing surprise" when they discovered the star had obliged.

The two shirts raised £650 and helped the club reach its target of £12,000.

Mr Williams said one of the buyers was a "massive Tom Cruise fan" who was "over the moon" to purchase a shirt.

Chairman Robert Hill said the club had lost about £30,000 due to various tournaments being cancelled due to coronavirus.

"It's not been easy for anyone in the pandemic, but in grassroots football we've had this on/off situation," Mr Hill said.

"We were really concerned as the tournaments that were cancelled are our main source of income for the disability football we do as well as the girls' football project."

Mr Williams set up a crowdfunding page for the club, which supports 550 players of all abilities from age five to adult, and aimed to raise £12,000 in a month.

He said "there were tears" when he realised they had reached the target so soon, and it had made him feel "hugely optimistic" about the future.

"We will be able to play our part in building communities back up after the pandemic," he said.

A third shirt signed by Cruise was being kept at the club "as a piece of history", but Mr Williams said they were now debating whether it should be sold.

"The film crew may be back at some point so we might have to ask for another favour," he said.

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