WHERE there's muck there's brass...it's a saying that has echoed around the countryside for years.

And Romsey Young Farmers' Club proved the point yet again when they held their annual 'dung drop' and raised a fantastic £500 for the Romsey-based XLP Research Trust charity.

To raise the cash, the Young Farmers collected hundreds of sacks of manure produced by the pedigree beef herd of cattle at J & J Parsons' Four Jays Farm at Ower and delivered it to the gardens of homes throughout the area.

The XLP Trust has been launched by Romsey's Hartley family who are battling to find an effective cure for the rare genetic condition known as X-linked lymphoproliferative syndrome.

Parents David and Allison Hartley were told two-and-a-half years ago that their four sons would have to go through the trauma of having life-saving bone marrow transplants to overcome the condition, which is also known as Duncan's disease. The three oldest boys, Joshua, 14, Nathan, 12, and Daniel, 10, have had their transplants and a date is awaited for Luke, six.

But in order to save other families to have to embark on the gruelling transplant trail, the family have launched the trust to fund the research which could find a lasting cure.

"The £500 is the most we have ever raised on a 'dung drop' and we were really pleased to present it to such a worthy cause.

"We had a great evening with the family. They are lovely people and it was nice to meet them all," said Liz Windell of the Young Farmers.

Meanwhile, Joshua has continued his brave battle towards recovery with a minor 'op' at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital to make injections easier.

Nathan is continuing to get "better and better", Mr Hartley added, while Daniel "continues to improve" and Luke "remains well and full of talk".

Details of the XLP Trust can be found at www.xlpresearchtrust.org