ARSENAL CELEBRITY ELEVEN 3 BICKLAND ALL STARS 1 Bickland Park looked a bit like a scene from Albert Square on Sunday as actors from EastEnders stared in a charity match for Children’s Hospice South West's Precious Lives Appeal.

Sam Attwater, who plays Leon in the popular soap, along with Devon Anderson, who plays Billy, put on their football boots to play for an Arsenal Celebrity side, which also included Groundforce builder Tommy Walsh. There was also celebrities in the crowd as Shona McGarty and Melissa Suffield, who play Whitney and Lucy in EastEnders, turned up to support colleagues. The Arsenal side played against a Bickland All Star XI, which was made up of Cornish footballers and members of the local media, including the Packet’s sports editor Simon Larkins.

The visitors started slowly but took the lead when actor Giles Anderson picked up a loose ball in the box to fire home. Moments later Marcus Smith then aimed an excellent shot past Porthleven’s manager John Dent to give the Arsenal side a 2-0 lead. Bickland All Stars’ manager Alan Carey then urged his side to keep the ball more during his half time team talk and to push further up the field to restrict the time and space the visitors were getting on the ball. The changes worked as the Bickland All Stars, with the help of a cameo appearance from Betty Stoggs, got the score back to 2-1 with a powerful strike from Mike Shilton, son of former England goalkeeper Peter.

However, the game was won as Arsenal broke on the counter to score their third goal through Giles Anderson. The event was a huge success on the charity front with organiser Ann Congdon expecting thousands to be raised for the Precious Lives Appeal.

Arsenal Celebrity XI: Tommy Walsh, Brian Hornsby, John Matthews, Patrick Robinson, John Harrison, Devon Anderson, Sam Attwater, Frank Thompson, Paul Watson, Giles Anderson, Ian Ferguson, Fenton Gee, Matt Mansfield, Paul Martin, Marcus Smith .

Bickland All Stars: Russell Welsh, Micky Westgarth, John Dent, Michael Shilton, Simon Adams, Martin McGee, Ed Rowe, Paul Murray, Robin Watt, Chaz Newman, Michael Richards, Lee Hall, Christopher Strike, Kevin Jeffries, George Torrance, Steve Flack, Neil Caddy, Shane Soloman, Adam Reinke, Simon Larkins, Chris Pellow, Philip Shapcott