Annual football tournament to be held in memory of Justin Vanezi, organised by his friend of 30 years

An annual football tournament is to be held in memory of Justin Vanezi, organised by one of his friends of more than 30 years.

Justin, described as “one in a million” and “simply irreplaceable” by his wife Becky, sadly passed away at the end of January, aged 40, following a 20-month cancer battle.

He was diagnosed with two types of cancer – one was an extremely rare and aggressive form of blood cancer, called Primary Cutaneous Diffuse B Cell Lymphoma of the leg, and the other was Large B-Cell Lymphoma.

Justin was a much-loved member of the community, having owned a Greek food business called My Meze BBQ and DJing for a number of years.

Support from the community saw more than £80,000 raised for overseas treatment and this money will now be donated to the charities and causes closest to Justin’s heart – to keep his memory alive.

The Vanezi Cup will raise money for different cancer charities each year and will bring people together to remember and celebrate Justin’s life.

This year’s six-a-side tournament is planned for Sunday, June 2 at Spratton Playing Field and has been organised by Kris Desmond, a friend of Justin’s since they went to nursery together.

Kris and Justin remained close ever since they lived around the corner from one another in Kingsthorpe, and Kris organised the Night 4 Vanezi fundraiser last June.

This year the money raised will sponsor a marathon attempt by Dan Calvert in April, which he is completing in memory of Justin. Dan is donating all sponsorship money to Blood Cancer UK.

Though the event was going to be a one-off as a thank you to Dan for his plan to run a marathon and for helping to organise a fundraiser while Justin was unwell, Kris decided to make it annual to donate the money each year in Justin’s name.

When asked how much it would mean for people to get behind the tournament and show their support, Kris told the Chronicle & Echo: “It would mean so much to us and Justin’s family as well. We all know how much he was loved and it gives everyone a chance to come together once a year.

“All the families will come together, have some fun and a kickabout. Justin loved his football. There will hopefully be bouncy castles for kids and families to enjoy.”

As a friend of Justin’s for decades, Kris was asked what everyone admired most about him.

“To sum Justin up, it was the fact that during the worst of his health he always asked how you and your family were first,” said Kris.

For anyone who wants to get involved, six-a-side teams of up to nine players can register for £75 per team.

Kris hopes to see 32 teams compete and nine have already signed up, leaving 23 spaces remaining – and you can register using the website link at the end of this story. All ages and abilities are welcome.

The organiser would love to hand out trophies and medals to the winners, with the support of a business who would be willing to sponsor the event. Anyone interested should email [email protected].

For more information, or to sign up your team, visit The Vanezi Cup page on the Remembering Justin website and the tournament’s Facebook page.