This story deserves full recognition, so we wanted to write this piece to inform the international Football community who many not be familiar with it. In early 2016, Megan Pratt, a young school girl from Hull, was taken to hospital after jaw and facial complaints. What was originally suspected to be a tooth-abscess turned out to be a cancerous tumour, later determined to be terminal.

Megan was an avid Hull City fan, and the tragic news shocked City’s fan base as her health deteriorated. Fans came together to campaign for donations to cancer charities and for donations to the Pratt family’s personal cause. The brave Megan underwent intensive surgery in the summer, as the tumour was successfully removed and her jaw reconstructed, but the terminal cancer remained.

The club itself picked up on the story, and began contributing themselves. Individual players made enormous donations, often in the thousands, to pay for the expensive treatment. The club also arranged for Megan to meet the entire team and spend a day with them at the Cottingham training ground. As the new Premier League season began, the fans on the terraces were donating any change they had into buckets. Visiting supporters were also doing what they could. Fans of Arsenal, one of our biggest on-pitch enemies, heard of Megan’s story and gave a huge amount during their visit.

She’s one of our own. She’s one of our own. Megan’s a Tiger! She’s one of our own.

The next step was conducted by the club, who had chosen to have Megan as the mascot of honour at yesterday’s fixture at home to Chelsea. The teams were to walk out with Megan before the game. However, Megan tragically lost her fight on Thursday evening. The reaction of the fans was obviously one of deep sorrow, but also of immediate desire to go ahead and dedicate the game to her. Thus, fans and players, home and away alike, came together for a minute’s applause in her honour before kick-off. Every single Chelsea fan also got to their feet and applauded, big respect to them for doing so. During the applause the North Stand sung “Megan’s a Tiger. She’s one of her own”.

It was a beautiful moment, and one which reminds us of both the strong community that Football creates and that fans really do have their hearts in the right place. We come together in the face of tragedy. It is completely cruel and injust that someone so young should be taken in such a way, but Megan Pratt’s bravery and spirit will live on every time a Hullensian donates or does anything for cancer research charities or related.

R.I.P. Megan Pratt, gone but not forgotten.

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