North East unites as Sunderland fans raise whopping £21k for Newcastle supporters killed in MH17 disaster

Sunderland fans have raised over £21,000 in memory of dedicated Newcastle United fans John Alder and Liam Sweeney who died when the Malaysian Airlines plane was shot down over Ukraine.

In a touching gesture of solidarity between the two North East clubs, Black Cats supporter Gary Ferguson started a fundraising page at http://www.gofundme.com and promoted it through the Sunderland message board at http://www.readytogo.net.

The funds raised will go towards a floral tribute with all the extra cash, which seems set to be a lot, to go to charities including the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and Marie Curie.

Ferguson said: ‘We may be Sunderland fans, who traditionally have deep rivalry with Newcastle, but there are things far more important than any football games.

‘The incredibly sad news that has emerged this week about two Newcastle fans who have passed has left us all shocked and deeply saddened.

‘Thank you for your time, effort and donations.

‘RIP to John Alder and Liam Sweeney, who were both far too young.’

Alder, 63,  and Sweeney, 28, were both travelling to New Zealand via Kuala Lumpar to support their beloved Toon Army during their pre-season tour.

Earlier in the week, Alan Pardew said: ‘Myself and all the players are deeply shocked and saddened by this terrible news. We all knew how passionately John and Liam supported the team and the club.

‘They were with us just earlier this week for our first pre-season friendly against Oldham and their dedication to travel all the way around the world to support us in New Zealand tells you all you need to know about the passion they had for Newcastle United. Our hearts go out to their families and friends.’

The page is still open and the figure being raised continues to rise, with fans of other clubs also getting involved to donate.

Malaysia Airlines offers refunds for scared customers and retires MH17 flight number

Malaysia Airlines is to offer refunds to any passengers who are too scared to fly on its planes, and has announced that it will retire the MH17 flight number.

The airline said that it would waive all fees and accept all requests to postpone or cancel flights scheduled for this year, even on non-refundable tickets.

It comes as questions are being asked if the carrier can survive after two disasters in five months.

The airline also announced it would stop using the flight number MH17 ‘out of respect for the crew and passengers’ who died.

While it did not intend to reduce the number of flights between Kuala Lumpur and Amsterdam, the call sign would now be MH19.

The airline defended itself from claims that the pilots of MH17 should not have been flying over Ukrainian airspace, saying ‘it never strayed into restricted airspace’.

Woman shoots her boyfriend in the stomach because of his poor performance in the bedroom

One woman has taken her dissatisfaction in the bedroom to shocking extremes after shooting her partner.

Sadie Bell, of Detroit, Michigan, shot Edward Lee in the stomach because she felt Lee was producing a diminished level of ejaculate, suggesting he was cheating on her.

‘She stated that she knew he was having an affair because he wasn’t producing enough ejaculate,’ Chief Assistant Prosecutor Paul Walton told CBS Detroit. ‘To quote her, she was pissed off, so she shot him.’

Bell was initially sentenced to 10 years in prison, but her attorney filed a motion to get her out on bond pending appeal which, to Walton’s bemusement, was granted.

In 1991, Bell shot her then husband, but was not charged. Walton believes her history means she should be behind bars.

‘She has demonstrated that her past behaviour is…to act out in violence, not necessarily with reason,’ he said.

Lee is still in recovery.

World Cup Trophy Damaged By Mystery Germany Player

The chief of Germany’s football association (DFB) has revealed that one of the team’s triumphant players has damaged their World Cup trophy.

Joachim Low’s men defeated Argentina 1-0 in the final after extra-time to win the fourth world title in their history, following on from 1954, 1974 and 1990 victories.

The Germany squad were welcomed home from Brazil to jubilant scenes and toured Berlin with the trophy during midweek – but may have celebrated a little bit too hard as their World Cup trophy has been damaged by an unknown member of the team.

“At one point, a small piece of our World Cup trophy was chipped off,” DFB president Wolfgang Niersbach is quoted by Die Welt as saying. “But do not worry! We have specialists on the case who can fix it.
“We have investigated persistently who it was that damaged the trophy, but the investigation was concluded without a result.”

Luckily for Germany, the cup they have been given by Fifa is just a replica of the World Cup trophy they were presented with at the Maracana on July 13, which is estimated to be worth over €10 million (£8m).

Fifa – it would seem wisely – tends not to trust football associations with the trophy after the original World Cup award, the Jules Rimet trophy, had a history of being a target for thieves before being stolen for good in 1983 from Brazil.

The Worlds Most Mysterious Skin Condition:He wishes to get married one day

 A man dubbed ‘Tree Man of Java’ is planning to get married after 4lb of bark were cut away.

Dede Koswara, 37, says he plans to get hitched now that he can use his hands and walk without pain

Speaking from an Indonesian hospital, he told the Daily Telegraph website: “What I really want first is to get better and find a job. But then, one day, who knows? I might meet a girl and get married.”

Dede’s first wife left him and he lost his job because of his bizarre affliction.

At one point to feed his two children he joined a freak show with other victims of peculiar diseases.

 But now, following a series of operations to cut away the tree-like growths, he can see the outline of his toes for the first time.

He has also become a sudoko addict now he can hold a pen.

He said he hopes that he will resume a normal life after two more operations to graft undamaged skin onto his hands, feet and face.

Since Dede cut his knee as a teenager, strange roots have been growing out of him.

A small wart developed on his lower leg and spread uncontrollably.

But last year US dermatology expert Dr Anthony Gaspari took up his case.

He concluded Dede’s odd affliction was caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a fairly common infection usually causing only small warts.

But in Dede’s case he had an extremely rare immune system deficiency, leaving his body unable to contain the warts.