Cleethorpes Town give young football fan day to remember

Reggie Aslin was invited by the Owls to come and enjoy the full VIP experience at their most recent home fixture on Saturday.

Reggie was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), meaning he only has half a heart due to complications with his blood flow.

HLHS is a very severe congenital heart defect that affects only two in every 10,000 babies. 

Young Reggie has already undergone multiple open-heart surgeries, with the first occurring when he was just four days old, a second at six months, and a final, major reconstruction in March 2023.

Unfortunately, Reggie suffered multiple mini-strokes following his final operation, and his parents were told he may not walk, talk or be able to see again.

However, he has defied the odds and made a remarkable recovery, and is currently on a mission to visit every one of the 92 EFL grounds.

On Saturday, Reggie enjoyed a special stop-off at the HPS Plant Hire Stadium, where he had the chance to meet the Cleethorpes team and walk out with the players.

Grimsby Town supporter Reggie took to the field alongside Owls goalkeeper Ollie Battersby, who previously played for Grimsby at the start of his career.

Reflecting on the day, Cleethorpes said: "When we heard about Reggie’s story... we decided to reach out and offer him the chance to come down for the full VIP treatment.

"We have put together a little video of Reggie’s day as a reminder to us of how privileged we were to have him there.

"We hope he enjoyed the day as much as we enjoyed having him. We hope that he will come down and cheer us on again sometime.

“Once an Owl, always an Owl.”