Friends and family have described how a "lovely and bubbly" young footballer was "cruelly taken" from them when she died suddenly.

Relatives of Danielle Cubitt have now set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for a memorial bench in her honour.

The 20-year-old was born and raised in Barnes, London, but moved to Aylesford in 2021 to be with her girlfriend Sade.

Her older sister, Ceejay Cubitt, says Danielle was a lovely and bubbly girl.

She said: "She was the happiest out of all of us – she had a brilliant smile and a contagious laugh.

"Danielle was so fun to be around, and always was the loudest in the room.

"I remember her singing along to Disney songs, and how she would call her nieces and nephews 'niblings'."

The talented footballer was looking forward to starting an apprenticeship with the police, and was currently working in a Lidl warehouse.

"I think her caring nature was engrained from a young age," Ceejay explained.

"She is one of 12 brothers and sisters, we have always looked out for one another."

"Danielle was also close to our mum.

"In May she passed her driving test and made regular trips to London to see everyone – she would joke how she would plan to see one sibling each month."

The 20-year-old played for Aylesford Ladies FC as center-back, but also worked in match control at Priestfield Stadium in Gillingham.

She had also previously played for Barnes Eagles when she was seven-years-old, as well as Westside, Hampton & Richmond, Dorking Wanderers, Sutton United and Richmond & Kew.

Ceejay said: "Danielle moved around a lot growing up as the clubs wouldn't always have teams for her age.

"I knew she was big into football, but I didn't know how much of a part she played in the community.

"The amount of teams and fans that have commented and sent us messages has been lovely.

"Aylesford FC are incredible and they treated her like a sister."

Ceejay adds the hardest part is not knowing how or why she died.

"Danielle passed away in her sleep," she said. "We just don't understand why at the moment – she was happy, healthy and cruelly taken from us."

The family's GoFundMe page has already raised nearly £3,000, and has had over 100 donations.

To donate, visit their fundraising page here.

A post on the page said: "We are all still trying to process this heartbreaking and cruel news.

"Danielle was an amazing sister, daughter, auntie, girlfriend, and friend to many.

"She was a talented and passionate football player and brightened up every room with her brilliant smile and contagious laugh.

"It is impossible to imagine that we will never see Danielle smile, or hear her laugh, ever again."

The bench is planned to be installed in Vine Road Recreation Ground – where she previously spent a lot of time playing after school and at the weekend.

Everyone will be welcome to visit and pay their respects.