Freddie Haynes (2007-2023) was a huge Fulham fan. He was an academy player aged 6, and a season ticket holder along with his Dad, Paul and older brother Harrison, and had met many of his Fulham heros over the years...

Freddie and his Dad were born on the same day, and their shared birthdays were noisy and joyful affairs.

It won't be this year.

This year Freddie's family are facing the first birthday without Freddie. In the summer Freddie (aged 16) went out with friends and had arranged for his Dad Paul to collect him, but when Paul arrived he wasn't where he has said he would be at the agreed time. After waiting 10 minutes, Paul crossed the road to check if Freddie was around, and found him face down on the pavement, Paul tried in vain to resuscitate his son. it later turned out that Freddie had a congenital heart defect.

Paul, his wife Emma, and Freddie's older brother's Harrison's lives have been searingly painful every day since. Neither Paul nor his wife could work for months, and Paul only got paid when he worked. Life without Freddie has been hideous, and made harder still by worrying about money. Paul has only recently been able to return to work, but has just this week had the devastating blow that he has cancer.

We can't take away the pain of losing a son, or a brother, or cure cancer, but we, the Fulham family can make life a little easier for one of our own families going through the toughest of times.

Thank you for reading this, and for giving what you can to help make life for the Haynes family a bit easier during a heart-breaking time. . .