YOUNG footballers in Africa are flying the Long Lee colours after being given an old strip by the club.

Former referee Billy Westfall has built a close relationship with people in Gambia where he and his wife Ann take regular holidays.

"We've been going twice a year for the last five or six years and have become friends with people who run the club and regularly take donated strips out for the team. They are very poor, but are football mad," Billy said.

"The response is just incredible, they have absolutely nothing but make us so welcome."

He approached Long Lee to see if they had any spare shirts to take to the team of 10-14-year-olds.

Club secretary Kath Rickaby said: "We gladly sorted out some kits which we no longer use, mainly because there are shirts missing and cannot be used by our 11-a-side teams."

The kit was originally sponsored some years ago by Keighley & District Travel.

"We got to know the club when we first went on holiday. A few of the guys in the hotel were suffering from soccer withdrawal symptoms and we decided to find a local game. We all got on really well and have kept in contact.

"Most of the youngsters play in bare feet and those who are lucky enough to have a pair of boots will share them. If there are two players with one left-footed and the other right-footed they will wear one boot each."

This time he donated a strip to the school team in the town of Serekunda.

"The lads were so pleased with their new strip they were thinking of changing their name to Long Lee United in honour of the Keighley club. They were so excited you would have thought we had offered them contracts with Manchester United," he said.