Arsenal fanatic crowned Young Gunner of the Year

The pint-sized Ballymoney lad travelled to the home of Arsene Wenger’s men - the Emirates - to pick up the prestigious gong which was presented to him by midfield maestro Tomas Rosicky.

During the visit Matthew got to meet the squad including his hero Cesc Fabregas.

The eight-year-old Model School pupil won last year’s Nutty Krust challenge in Ballymoney and was subsequently selected to compete at the IFA’s Search for a Star.

The 150 youngsters taking part were divided into groups of three for a number of tests including skills, speed tests and penalty kicks.

And it was Matthew’s side which came out on top.

Matthew’s dad Benny then spotted an advert inviting submissions for the prestigious Young Gunners Awards.

He sent off the 200 word entry detailing Matthew’s achievements over the past 12 months.

“We sent it off and never heard any more about it,” said Benny, himself a die-hard Gooner.

“Then we got word saying we’d been invited over but we’d no idea at that stage Matthew had won.

“Matthew was allowed two guests so myself and my other son Thomas went along and we got to watch the team training before having lunch in the VIP lounge. That’s when the awards were announced and we were absolutely ecstatic when Matthew was named Sports Star of the Year.

“It’s a fantastic achievement for a boy from a wee town like Ballymoney.”

After the presentation of a plaque by Rosicky, Matthew and the other finalists were allowed backstage where they mingled with the Arsenal first team players and had their shirts signed.

“He had a wonderful time meeting all the players who were happy to pose for pictures and sign autographs,” said Benny.

“I think the highlight though was meeting Cesc who Matthew is a massive fan of. It was like winning the Golden Ticket to be able to spend a day like that. He’ll never forget it.”

Matthew was given an added boost with Fabregas announcing that day that he was staying with the Gunners.

But should the little Spanish maestro decide to head to pastures new in the future perhaps young Matthew will be on hand to pull on the Gunners’ number four shirt.