A YORK rugby club is to stage a special tournament on Sunday to raise funds for a player’s sister who is fighting cancer.

Ten teams from across York are set to take part in the sevens contest at York Acorn Amateur Rugby League Club to help mother-of-three Katie Stephenson, the sister of young player Matthew Downes.

Matthew said Katie, 31, had been diagnosed with cancer for a second time in the autumn after doctors believed she had beaten breast cancer three years ago, and she had recently been undergoing treatment including chemotherapy.

He said Katie, who now lives in Scarborough but lived previously in York, had been a keen Acorn fan since he started playing for the club a couple of years ago, regularly turning up to cheer the team on.

He said she was a single mother with three sons aged five, seven and 12, and he wanted to help her financially as she underwent treatment.

Matthew therefore decided to ask if the club could do anything to raise funds for her and also for research into breast cancer, and the response from coach Josh Mortimer and fellow players was really positive.

He said it was eventually decided to hold a sevens tournament, which will be staged at the club in Thanet Road, Dringhouses, between 10am and 2pm on Sunday (January 20).

Josh said the event will involve 10 teams: three from Acorn, two from New Earswick, one from Leeds Trinity University, others from York Rugby Union and Selby Rugby Union clubs, and also an Acorn masters team for over 35s and York Knights women.

He said the latter two teams will be involved in tag games while the rest will be contact games.

He said admission would be free but people would be asked to make donations on the gate and there would also be a raffle to raise funds.

The money raised will be divided between Katie and her family and research into breast cancer, he added.