Almost a thousands people packed into a football stadium to celebrate the life of a keen sportsman who drowned while taking part in his first triathlon.

Paul Gallihawk, 34, of Postmill Drive, Tovil, died during the 750m swimming leg of the Ocean Lake Triathlon at Leybourne Lakes, Larkfield, in August.

In a fitting tribute, the football team he formed, Whitehawks FC, played a charity match against a side made up of big-name players, dubbed Paul's Eleven, and ended up beating them 7-3.

The match took place at Maidstone United’s Gallagher Stadium in James Whatman Way yesterday evening and star sportsmen included former premier league player Nicky Southall, Leyton Orient boss Andy Hessenthaler and Maidstone manager Jay Saunders.

Brother and sister Jordan and Carley Malet, who had known Mr Gallihawk since he was a toddler, organised the match, which was attended by his parents Malcolm and Linda and other family members.

Miss Malet said: “It went better than we could have expected. We sold 150 tickets on the gate and had about 750 adults and 150 kids at the stadium in total.

“There was a one-minute applause before the match because we’d already had a silence and we wanted to celebrate his life. It was the team’s way of saying goodbye to Paul.”

Before the applause Mr Gallihawk’s favourite song, Songbird by Britpop band Oasis, was played and 23 minutes into the game his name appeared on the board as he always played in a number 23 shirt.

Money from ticket sales, a raffle and a silent auction is still being counted but the pair believe thousands have been raised for King’s College Hospital and Epilepsy UK.

A huge Tottenham Hotspur FC supporter, Mr Gallihawk, who was epileptic but hadn’t had a fit for 10 years, disappeared shortly after entering the water on Saturday, August 29.

His body was not discovered until the Monday.

When an inquest into Mr Gallihawk’s death was opened in September the cause of death was revealed as immersion, with epilepsy being a contributing factor.