WORLD Cup winner Sir Geoff Hurst cast his eye over a selection of future England hopefuls as Larkspur Rovers Youth enjoyed a dream day out at Wembley Stadium.
Larkspur under-10s - who were representing the Middlesex FA - joined more than 700 children from across the country at the McDonald's National Football Festival, the showpiece event of the year, following a nationwide regional Open Day tour.
Larkspur youngsters enjoyed an action-packed day of coaching and mini-tournaments, including expert tuition from Eric Harrison, the former Manchester United Youth Team boss, who helped to nurture the careers of David Beckham and Ryan Giggs.
And Larkspur manager Graham Bartlett, of Carr Road, Northolt, was delighted his side were offered the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"We told the kids at a training session a few weeks ago and they could not have been more excited," he said.
"If you could have heard them on the coach going to Wembley, you would know what it meant to them to play there. They know what Wembley is all about and know how lucky they are to do something that very few people get to do.
"It was a brilliant day and it's something that they will all remember for the rest of their lives."
The national festival is part of the McDonald's community football programme, which involves the company in sponsoring more than 4,500 local football clubs and in coaching more than a million children.
Larkspur players - who play in the Harrow Soccer 7s Combination League - graced the Wembley turf just days before Chelsea and Manchester United locked horns in the Community Shield.
And Hurst is hopeful some of the youngsters on show might be back pulling on an England shirt in the future.
"I was delighted to be involved with a scheme that was able to give the kids the chance to play at Wembley," said Hurst, who was joined by some of the 13,000 new volunteer community coaches that McDonald's has helped to create in England in the past six years.
"They've had the chance to play at this great stadium and you never know some of them might be back one day playing professionally." [25cf] McDonald's is The FA's Official Community Partner.You can find more information about its coaching programme on it website, at www.mcdonalds.co.uk.
