Crystal Palace goalie, Julian Speroni, swapped the football pitch for a sales pitch when he took to the tills at the Marie Curie Cancer Care shop in Caterham yesterday. Julian signed photos and chatted to customers for an hour and a half and was a hit with children and adults alike. Julian said: "I was thrilled to be invited to pop along and support my local Marie Curie shop in Caterham. The shop was amazing and I would urge everyone to sign up and become a volunteer. The shop raises vital funds to support the wonderful work that the Marie Curie nurses provide."

Almost 160 people queued to meet him and by 3.30pm the shop had to close its doors as it had run out of Julian's team photo.

"We were thrilled to have Julian here," said Karen Green, Volunteer Press Officer for Marie Curie. "Julian was a huge draw and was very generous with his time and support. He is a fabulous ambassador for Crystal Palace FC and it is great that he was willing to represent the charity like this and get people talking about our work."

Karen added: "I would like to say a big 'thank you' to Morrisons for donating a bottle of wine and to the Floral Gallery for a stunning bouquet of flowers, which we presented to Julian to thank him for coming to Church Walk today."