There are bog-standard fundraising football matches and then there is the kind of game that only a kit man who has been at Tottenham Hotspur for 36 years can put on.
Steve Dukes started working at Spurs in 1987 and it's fair to say he's become part of the furniture at the north London club over the decades. "I was here when Gazza made his debut!" he declares. Even as a youngster his PE teacher was the club's legendary double-winning winger Cliff Jones.
So when the popular 55-year-old decided he was going to put together a fundraising match in memory of his father Charlie, it was always going to end up being something special.
Known as Dukesy around the club, he is a man who admits "sometimes I pinch myself because I'm just a normal bloke who is lucky enough to be doing a brilliant job". Those who know him speak of an ever-smiling kit man always there and willing to help when needed.
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To put Dukes' popularity within Spurs and among the squad into context, on the morning that he was set to speak to football.london about the upcoming game on May 14 at Bishop's Stortford FC, current Tottenham player and Champions League winner Ivan Perisic - who has only been at the club for eight months - told him he wanted to play in his fundraising match in the future.
So it was never in doubt that those Dukes has helped over the years would come to his side when he needed them.
In fact the squad of former Tottenham players that have gathered around him and readily accepted the challenge to take on an team of ex-pros and celebrities is a line-up that Spurs fans are simply not going to want to miss.
"Harry Redknapp is managing the Spurs team. You've got Heurelho Gomes and Michel Vorm in goal. Then Ledley King, Michael Dawson, Younes Kaboul, Sebastian Bassong, Pascal Chimbonda and Stephen Kelly in defence," explained Dukes, who nowadays has the title of head of kit and equipment.
"In midfield you're looking at Edgar Davids, Aaron Lennon, Tom Huddlestone, Sandro, Wilson Palacios and David Bentley.
"Then up top it gets even better because you've got Robbie Keane, Jermain Defoe, Dimitar Berbatov and Rafael van der Vaart."
Swiftly realising that the opposing team, managed by Hollywood star Ray Winstone, was likely to be torn apart by a Spurs side featuring so much quality and an abundance of players who have only just retired or have remained in top shape, Dukes called on some ex-pros to bolster them.
"I've got Yaya Toure, Joe Cole, Fitz Hall, Charlie Daniels, Wayne Routledge and Jamie O'Hara in the opposition team. Up top I've got Carlton Cole and Marlon Harewood," he said. "At first there weren't many ex-pros but it became clear we needed some otherwise they were going to get smashed!
"Celebrity wise we've got Jonathan Trott, a couple of guys from Love Island, Luca Bish and Ron Hall. Then there's Mark Wright, Billy Wingrove, Antony Costa from Blue and Jake Hall as well as some DJs in Spoony and Majestic. I've got some YouTubers and it's a nice mixture of everyone."
Even the referee is no low level official. It's former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg, while Spurs legends such as Graham Roberts, Micky Hazard and Paul Miller have also been invited to attend.
It's going to be a remarkable spectacle and Dukes has been taken aback by the response from those he's known over the years.
"We sold out in 24 hours and then I managed to get more [capacity] and they went in 24 hours again. It's mad," he said. "It's mad the people I've had to turn away, not only supporters but ex-players and celebrities contacting me now."
Behind this remarkable match though there is a reason for it all and it's the reason why everyone has come together for Dukes.
Three years ago, his father Charlie, a keen cyclist, popped out on a quick ride. He said he was just riding up to the local farm to get some bits and that he would be back in half an hour. The 73-year-old never returned.
Charlie was found by the side of the road with three fractures in his skull and despite being treated and airlifted by the Essex & Herts Air Ambulance to the Royal London Hospital's trauma unit he continued to deteriorate and his life support was switched off five days later.
All of the Dukes family dealt with Charlie's sudden death in their own ways and for Steve he eventually found that putting his energy into raising money in his father's name for those operating the air ambulance that tried to give him a fighting chance helped him deal with the grief.
In 2021, the Spurs kit man organised an auction of signed shirts from all 92 of the clubs in the Premier League and Football League and along with a JustGiving page, £47,000 was raised that year.
The following year, he put together a huge 16-day charity auction of signed memorabilia with items from Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo just to name a few.
Then came the idea to create a fundraising match that he now hopes will become an ever-growing annual event in his father's name.
"With the auction I just couldn't expect people to carry on giving these gestures of good will, giving me these shirts and I think we did all the UK, all the big teams all the way down to League Two. That was the first auction.
"Then we did Europe and international teams last year so I could have just closed shop and said I'd done my bit but I still want to push it for my dad," said Dukes.
"Obviously I want to help other people now but I still feel like Dad is with me doing it and that's huge for me. People in my family have struggled with it. This my way of dealing with it.
"I struggled with losing him but this is my way of putting my sadness and negativity into something positive. That's what helps me. I could be just doom and gloom and feel sorry for myself, but I want to do this and it's all in memory of my dad. My dad's name is out there and my dad's name is well known and that's what it's all in aid of.
"I'd sooner have my dad alive and I wasn't doing it, but he's not so I will do this and I will continue to do this."
The money has rolled in for the Essex & Herts Air Ambulance through his efforts and now the Spurs man wants to extend the scope of those he can help.
"Up until we started on this match, our total raised was £88,000. Now with ticket sales for the match alone and sponsorship I'm up to £50,000 for this," he said. "Then I've got a shirt auction with the players who are going to play, sponsorship in the programmes and the proceeds of selling the programmes themselves. I reckon I could get up to £70,000 this year. So I'll be getting up to £150,000 in total.
"I always wanted to get to £100,000 although I didn't think I would, but now I've smashed through that. What I would like to do now is to help small groups and communities within the area, so whether that's in Tottenham or Hertfordshire where I'm from, and parts of Essex.
"Let's say a women's refuge or something like that, I could go and support them. If there's something in Tottenham, like a kid's club where they need extra bits and pieces I can put money towards that, or foodbanks.
"It's nothing in particular now, so if people want to get in contact with a good cause. I know there are some that are close to the club's heart that I would like to help out, but if there are others in need, smaller groups that need help, then that's what I would like to do."
Dukes wants to see the big day at Bishop's Stortford go off without a hitch on May 14 (kick-off 1.30pm) but if it all goes as he hopes it will then he has big plans for the future of the fundraising match.
"It's shocked me how much people have got behind it. I knew I could get some decent players for the Spurs team but the celebrity team I was wondering who I could get. Now I'm getting people asking me, which is amazing," he said.
"I'm already thinking of next year and people are saying why don't you play against Liverpool Legends or West Ham Legends so that's sown the seed a little bit. Do I go down that route or perhaps with celebrities there's a bit of something for everybody?
"I've already spoken to someone about Watford next year potentially as a venue. I think that I could go straight to that level with the people involved. You never know, Spurs might approach me and see how well it's gone down and ask if I want to do it at the stadium.
"Maybe that's in a few years' time. Lots of players have expressed interest for the future. Lots of former Spurs academy boys as well which is nice for me.
"The beauty of this is, every time a player retires they're going to want to jump on the bandwagon. I've had players get in contact about it for the future, I've had Danny Rose and Andros Townsend mentioning it to me and even Ivan Perisic this morning. Players want to be part of it. This could go on for years and years to come.
"You know the dream has to be one day playing the match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium."
With the popularity of Dukesy and his good intentions in his father Charlie's name, there no doubt his dream will one day come true.
To donate to the fundraising in memory of Charlie Dukes you can head to the JustGiving page right here and you can look out for the latest news on the May 14 match and the accompanying auction on Steve's Instagram page right here. For those wishing to put their cause forward to be considered to receive money from the funds raised, they should email cdcharityfootball@yahoo.com
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