Hull City supporters introduced to their heroes by Quickline
SPECIAL EVENT: Matt Crooks and Lewie Coyle being quizzed by Alex Burgess. Pictures by Hull News & Pictures
By Rick Lyon, Co-Editor
Hull City fans were given the opportunity to quiz two of their idols at an exclusive ‘Meet the Players’ event hosted by rural broadband provider Quickline.
More than 160 supporters living in areas of East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire where Quickline is delivering fast, reliable broadband were invited to the special occasion.
They met Tigers captain, right back Lewie Coyle, and recent signing, midfielder Matt Crooks at The Manor Rooms, in South Cave, East Yorkshire.
Following a welcome by club mascot Roary the Tiger, a complimentary meal and drinks for all the attendees, the players took part in a Q&A session hosted by compere Alex Burgess.
During an interval, members of the audience were then able to submit their own questions to be posed to Coyle and Crooks.
Q&A: Matt Crooks and Lewie Coyle on stage at the Meet the Players event
The questions from supporters young and old ranged from serious football matters, to more personal and light-hearted – allowing them to get to know the players better.
Coyle and Crooks discussed their childhoods, their footballing and life heroes, what it takes to become a professional, their careers to date, the season so far and much more.
A raffle was held at the end of the session, with prizes including a Hull City shirt and football signed by the first team squad, before Coyle and Crooks chatted with fans, posed with them for photographs and signed autographs.
Quickline CEO Sean Royce said: “At Quickline, we believe in connecting people – not just through broadband, but by supporting the rural communities we serve.
“Hull City have a passionate fanbase across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, and we’re proud to work with the club to reach these communities.
PRIZES: Matt Crooks handing out a prize to a young raffle winner
“The Meet the Players event was a wonderful occasion and, for many of the children in the audience in particular, it will have been the first time they’d actually met a professional footballer. That’s a great thing for us to be able to deliver.
“Football clubs bring communities together, like we do at Quickline, so our collaboration with the club is an ideal fit.”
The event was part of Quickline’s collaboration with Hull City to deliver benefits to rural and often isolated communities across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, where it operates.
Hull City’s partnerships and hospitality manager Claire Burton said: “Supporters obviously don’t get access to the players like this on a match day, so it was a really good way to give them chance to get to know them a little better.
“Events like this are really important for the club to connect with our fans, and especially to give youngsters the chance to meet their heroes.
MEETING THE PLAYERS: Matt Crooks and Lewie Coyle signing autographs after the Q&A session
“Hull City have fans across the region, not just in Hull, and our partnership with Quickline is helping us bring the club and players to them in their own communities, which is something really quite special.”
Quickline was last year awarded four Project Gigabit contracts to provide gigabit-capable broadband to 170,000 hard-to-reach premises across the whole of Yorkshire and the majority of Lincolnshire.
Project Gigabit is a government-funded programme enabling communities that would otherwise miss out on access to gigabit-capable broadband, with the total public investment in Quickline’s full fibre rollout exceeding £300m.
The partnership with Hull City is part of an extensive social value programme Quickline has committed to as part of the Project Gigabit contracts.
The Meet the Players event was the latest community activity delivered as part of the collaboration.
IDOLS: Matt Crooks and Lewie Coyle posing with young Hull City players
Just a few weeks ago the provider brought players Matty Jacob and Liam Millar to Eastrington Primary School, near Goole, in East Yorkshire, to deliver a once-in-a-lifetime coaching session for pupils.
Supported by three coaches from the club’s charity partner, the Tigers Trust, left back Jacob and attacking midfielder Millar held a number of football-themed competitive games for more than 20 children from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6.
Following the one-hour session in the school’s playground, pupils and their parents and carers were able to pose for photographs with the players and get their autographs.