A young fan who travels almost 200 miles to see Newcastle United's home games has re-lived the moment when he celebrated the team's winning goal with Brazilian star Bruno Guimaraes.
Fans saw Bruno lift young Alfie Best onto the pitch as team-mate Chris Wood scored the penalty that sealed a crucial win over Wolves. Alfie has told of the thrill of that moment and how he is now hoping to get the Brazilian star's shirt to go with the one-in-a-million moment.
Alfie and his dad Jamie are in the first year as season ticket holders in the Gallowgate. Jamie, 29, has been a fan since he was 10, but the pair live in Birmingham so have been making a mammoth trek for each game this year. Jamie, a firefighter, has been a diehard fan since he was presented with an NUFC top by an uncle who lived in Jesmond during the Sir Bobby Robson era.
Speaking after Alfie was lifted on to the pitch by the Brazilian star, Jamie told ChronicleLive: "He's still absolutely buzzing. It's absolutely incredible for him, really something else. He's just this little lad who's met his hero. He's been a really big Bruno fan since he joined. I've been dead emotional about it, couldn't really believe it."
Alfie himself added: "It was incredible, amazing. Yes, really a dream come true!" He said Bruno had spoken to him, but amid the raucous St James' Park atmosphere he hadn't been sure what was said. "I heard him say a bit but I couldn't understand him," he said.
Alfie is now looking forward to telling his teammates at Brereton Town under-7s in Staffordshire all about his unforgettable experience. He will meet up with his friends tomorrow when he takes part in a sponsored 5k to raise money for the club.
Jamie explained how a family from Staffordshire came to be massive Newcastle fans. "I've been a fan since the age of 10. My uncle was living in Jesmond at the time and he sent me down a Newcastle shirt," he said. "It was one of those with NTL on the front. And my uncle said I looked a bit like Jermaine Jenas, who was obviously great at the time. I just fell in love with the club."
This year Jamie has started taking Alfie to Newcastle matches around the country - they've been on away trips to places like Crystal Palace along with the trips to St James' every other week, and he said the pair of them had loved it.
"He won't forget that for a while, that's for sure. He was absolutely over the moon. He was in a bit of a shock. Even the stewards didn't stop him and Bruno picked him up!"
Jamie said that Geordie fans had given them a warm welcome to Tyneside, and he loved to explain why a father and son from Staffordshire were massive Newcastle supporters. "You get chatting and they hear the accent and they love the story. All the fans love Alfie, saying he's the future and things like that."
The pair will be back at St James' Park for next week's Leicester City game, and the cherry on the top of a spectacular night for Alfie would be to get hold of the shirt Bruno wore last night. Alfie's aunt Sophie has tried Tweeting the star midfielder, and the family explained that managing to pair the shirt with the memory would put Alfie in dreamland.
So - Mr Guimaraes, can you help?
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