FIVE football-mad fundraisers from Ipswich are today preparing for the road-trip of a lifetime with poignancy, excitement and irony very much in the driving seat.

FIVE football-mad fundraisers from Ipswich are today preparing for the road-trip of a lifetime with poignancy, excitement and irony very much in the driving seat.

It is a feat some say is impossible, but they will be throwing doubters on to the hard shoulder as they attempt to visit 138 football stadiums around the UK in just 138 hours.

The lads, who already have a Guinness World Record under their belts, are driven by a desire to fight bowel cancer - a disease that killed their hero Bobby Moore and plagued a very close friend.

Sam Broadley, co-creator of the Done The Lot tour, said: “It is a mammoth task, undoubtedly. Some have said impossible.

“It is most certainly a daunting prospect - but we are utterly committed to becoming triumphant.”

Piled into a minibus, a squad of 15 philanthropic friends will start in Cardiff at midnight on April 20 and aim to cover all the professional, league and national stadiums across England, Wales and Scotland, as well as Northern Ireland's Windsor Park.

They hope their extraordinary actions will raise more than £50,000 for the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK and the Royal Marsden Cancer Hospital.

Mr Broadley, a former Kesgrave High School pupil, added: “If we wanted to do something easy we would have held a tombola.”

Four years ago, the group was awarded with a Guinness World Record for the Longest Ever Football Tour after they played teams in 15 countries across Europe and North Africa over a 45-day period in aid of the Bobby Moore Fund.

Shortly after, a tragic irony fell upon one of the squad, Nick Keher, who himself developed bowel cancer aged just 23.

He spent over a year undergoing surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy at the Royal Marsden Hospital before making a full recovery.

Mr Broadley, 27, who now works for Norfolk police, said: “All Nick's disease served to do was to strengthen our resolve to fight a cancer that can befall any one of us at any time.

“We are proud to be donating all funds raised through the Done The Lot Tour directly to these charities.”

If you would like to sponsor the Done The Lot tour or get more information, please visit www.donethelot.com and follow the link for 'donate' or call Sam Broadley on 07793 108382.

STARTING at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff at midnight, 15 lads will set off in a minibus with the aim of visiting an average of a stadium every hour.

At each destination, the squad will hop out of the bus for a quick photo before jumping back on board. By the end of the 138th hour, they hope to pull up beside the Bobby Moore statue outside New Wembley.

Sam Broadley said: “Take a look at the map. You will see the size of the task at hand. We are covering all professional league and national stadiums across England, Wales and Scotland, along with Northern Ireland's Windsor Park.”

Painstaking planning was required to give them the best chance of success, with London being the biggest obstacle.

To overcome the congestion of the big smoke, the team will traverse the capital in two parts and at night.

Mr Broadley said: “It took us a whole weekend to work out the shortest route and we have been amending it ever since.

“There will be no overnight stops - we'll be under pressure from the clock. The beauty of having a squad of 15 is that we can rotate the drivers regularly, allowing everyone some decent sleep time on a certain part of the bus designated solely for sleepers.”

One in 20 people in the UK will develop bowel cancer in their lifetime.

One person is diagnosed with bowel cancer every 15 minutes.

Both males and females are at equal risk of developing bowel cancer.

Over-50s have been more likely to develop bowel cancer - but the numbers of youngsters suffering is growing.

There are strong hereditary links to the cancer.

You are at increased risk if you take little exercise, are overweight and have a poor diet.

A high intake of fresh fruit and vegetables reduces the risk of developing the disease.

Ground facts.

The most northerly ground in Britain is Ross County's Victoria Park in Dingwall.

The largest league ground to be visited is Old Trafford with a capacity of nearly 77,000 - although the new Wembley can hold 90,000.

The smallest league ground in England is Accrington Stanley's Fraser Eagle Stadium with a capacity of 5,057.

The most southerly ground is Home Park, Plymouth.