AN ESSEX band took to the stage in London to raise money for Wrexham Football Club, as the lifelong fan guitarist attempts to help save his beloved club, despite living hundreds of miles away.

The Cuban Heel performed at The Caernarfon Castle, in Camden, London, in a bid to raise hundreds of pounds.

Andy Davies, 30, from Chelmsford, plays the rhythm guitar in the band and as an avid fan of Wrexham FC, with the support of the other four members of the band, he has vowed to give the money they raise tomorrow to the club.

After going to his first game at the Racecourse as a young boy living in Oswestry, he still travels hundreds of miles to see the reds, despite moving to Chelmsford.

Andy said: “We thought we’d make the gig a Wrexham FC charity gig to try and raise money to try and pay the tax bill.

“We contacted the London reds about the gig and they’ve got about 250 members, so we expect many of them to turn out.

“We get £2 for anyone we get through the door, so we should raise quite a bit.”

Andy said he is has been left disgusted along with many other fans about the prospect of losing the club.

He said: “I go to as many games as I can, even if that does mean doing a 500 mile round trip to get to the Racecourse and I’m prepared to do that for my club.

“I’d do anything I can to try and help save the Racecourse and this is the best way I can at the moment. We are going to pay the money straight to the supporters club.”

And Andy said the club had been overwhelmed by the support since announcing the gig was for Wrexham FC.

“I’ve been so surprised at the response, we’ve had about 200 e-mails about it. It’s been crazy. It’s brilliant,” he said.

The five members of the band played in Andy’s five Wrexham shirts for the gig.

A FORMER Wrexham FC player has kick-started a karaoke career after getting through to the final rounds of a national competition.

Nick Hencher, 43, from New Broughton hung up his football boots after a serious injury in the 1987 Welsh Cup final but has since found another talent in life – singing.

The father-of-two will head to Blackpool’s North Pier on Saturday for the semi-final of the karaoke competition, and will hopefully get through to Sunday’s grand final.

Followed by an army of family and friends to cheer him on, Nick hopes to beat off the competition from 25 hopefuls with his version of Tony Christie’s classic Is This the Way to Amarillo?

The karaoke event is held every year at the Merry England bar on the North Pier and it will be Nick’s third appearance in the final heats.

He reached the final in 2002 and the semi-final in 2003, and hopes 2004 could be his year of glory.

He said: “There are better singers than me around – I just go out and enjoy it. I am very nervous before I go on stage but the support gets you going and once I hear the cheering I’ll be ready. It’s an absolutely fantastic weekend and we all enjoy it.”

Some of his favourite karaoke tunes are by 1960s singer Gene Pitney, especially 24 Hours From Tulsa, and he also dabbles in some music by the Rat Pack.

He said: “I’m into more old-fashioned stuff. I started doing karaoke about six years ago in my spare time. I didn’t have time to sing when I was playing at Wrexham unless it was with a few beers after the game.”

Nick was forced to give up his footballing career at 28-years-old after damaging a cruciate ligament during the cup match.

But he is proud enough to have played for Wrexham and is delighted to see his two sons Michael, 15, and Daniel, 12, taking an interest in sport.

Nick will be joined in Blackpool by his wife, Sue, and a coach load of friends and family, rooting for the Wrexham karaoke star as he performs in front of 600 people.