Give A Gift From The Heart this Valentine's Day

Manchester Storm ice-hockey team welcome the Coventry Blaze on Wednesday 14th February to Planet Ice Altrincham.

Storm will take to the ice in special jerseys in support of bloody donation and will be asking fans to #GiveAGiftFromTheHeart this Valentine's Day.

With over 6000 people needing to give blood every day to meet the needs of hospitals and patients around the UK, and thousands more needed to give platelets to places such as The Christie, NHS Blood & Transplant needs new donors ever year to ensure hospital patients don't go without lifesaving blood.

Throughout February Manchester Storm players will visit the NHS Blood & Transplant donor Centre and labs at their Plymouth Grove base to see the fantastic work that is done before donating themselves.

Karen Ackerley from Plymouth Grove Donor Centre in Manchester said:

"Blood donation is vital and regularly saves lives of people in Greater Manchester. Manchester's donor centres need to collect around 600 units of blood each week to ensure hospital demands are met."

"Half of all donors are over 45 years old, so it's important that we recruite more young people to give blood, to help meet patient needs now and in the future. This year we are asking people of Manchester to focus on giving and to register to give blood."

Tickets for this special Valentine's Day match are on sale now.

For more information on how to become a Blood Donor click here.

• Manchester Storm