West Brom boss takes Albion squad on visit to Staffordshire children's hospice

The Baggies head coach is a long-term supporter of the Donna Louise Children’s Hospice in Stoke, a charity which supports children with life-limiting conditions, and has raised thousands of pounds for them over the past 10 years.

He got involved with the Donna Louise Trust when he was Stoke manager, and has run the London Marathon, cycled from John O'Groats to Land's End, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and rowed from London to Paris.

On Monday, he took the Baggies squad to the Hospice for a tour of the facilities and to learn more about the charity, which looks after 200 children and their families.

"As footballers, we live in a bubble,” said Pulis.

“We're oblivious to what really happens in the real world at times. (I was) just showing the lads and showing them how lucky they are.

"To be able to give support and help in any way, shape or form is just fantastic for us, this group of players and all the teams I've been at."

It is the second time Pulis has taken his Albion squad to the Hospice, they also visited back in 2015.

However, plenty of the team have signed for the Baggies since then and one or two have been promoted from the academy.

"When I was introduced to the Donna Louise over 10 years ago, it wasn't as vibrant as it is now,” added Pulis. “It wasn't as big.

"The improvements that have been made here are unbelievable, it's remarkable and great testament to the people here.”

But the Baggies have plenty of long-serving players who have been at the club for many years.

Hospice director of income generation Liz Gratton was impressed by the attitude of those who were returning for the second time.

"The squad came two years ago and there's quite a few of those guys who came back again,” she said.

"They were talking to me as we were going around and they remember bits from two years ago so it clearly stuck with them.

"They're so respectful and they're clearly engaging and listening to what we do.”

And the visit from the well-known Premier League footballers like Darren Fletcher, Jonny Evans, Nacer Chadli, Salomon Rondon, and Chris Brunt, went down extremely well with the children in the hospice.

"It's so important that people like Tony are involved, he's been good to us for so many years," added Liz.

"It's great for our families to see these guys, who are super heroes to a lot of people, just coming an experiencing their world. It really matters."

The Donna Louise Trust is a registered charity supporting children and families across Cheshire and Staffordshire.