It might be a scary time for Irfan but when he hears football, this spirited 7-year-old will immediately sit up and join the conversation, no matter how tired he is. Irfan may be going through treatment for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia but his mind is constantly on his favourite sport, football. His favourite team is our very own Malaysian champion, Johor Darul Ta’zim team, better known as JDT.

Earlier this year, Irfan had his wish to meet team Captain Safiq Rahim and JDT granted with the help of DYAM Tunku Ismail Idris Abdul Majid Abu Bakar Iskandar ibni Sultan Ibrahim Ismail, Tunku Mahkota of Johor.

On Feb 25, 2017, JDT played an exhilarating match against T-Team (Terengganu) where they invited Irfan onto the field as their mascot. Dressed in his personal jersey, hand in hand with Capt Safiq, Irfan strode onto the field, tall and proud.

That moment was beyond Irfan’s wildest dream. Imagine the stories he will tell his friends back home, each time he recalls this glorious moment.

According to Irfan’s mum, Puan Ruszita “he was so in awe to meet Safiq Rahim that he couldn’t speak, which is ironic because Irfan is usually very talkative.”

Irfan did find his voice by the end of the match when he presented Safiq with a gift he made – a toy tiger inside a box filled with pictures of the team. Capt Safiq was the one left tongue-tied by this lovely gesture at the end of the day. Bravo Irfan, you scored Gold in our hearts.