Fleetwood Town had special guest Tyler Kenyon at their recent home clash against Accrington Stanley, who became the first ever virtual mascot at Highbury, as part of Level Playing Field’s ‘Weeks of Action’ campaign.
The match against Accrington was Fleetwood’s assigned game in support of Level Playing Field – a disability charity that aims to promote a positive and inclusive experience for disabled sports fans as well as looking to ensure all fans attending and engaging with live sporting events have a positive impact.
Local primary school student Tyler, who is a massive member of the Cod Army, had his very own virtual mascot experience at Highbury Stadium, where he would have the chance to speak to the staff and players, before walking out the tunnel with the squad ahead of kick-off.
Here’s how Tyler’s day went:
Tyler’s day started off with a Zoom call from the staff at Fleetwood all wishing him a good day, including Head Coach Simon Grayson. The Kenyon’s were all on the call and laughed as stories were shared from everyone’s times in lockdown.
Midfielder Glenn Whelan then joined the call for a one-on-one chat with Tyler, which he seemed to enjoy. He told them what he thought the score would be, who his favourite players were and how he wanted to be back at Highbury as soon as he can!
Soon after that, Tyler’s favourite player, Alex Cairns, sent a video message to the Kenyon family, which Tyler was ecstatic about! He was that excited. he went to get his goalkeeper gloves, signed by Fleetwood’s number 21, and couldn’t wait to show those on the call.
To add to this, Alex then walked out of the tunnel at Highbury, ahead of kick-off, with Tyler and the team. He was able to see all the players and experience what it would be like to run out as part of the Fleetwood Town team.
Once all the pre-match excitement was over, the Kenyon’s sat down to watch the game live on a VIP iFollow account and cheered on the Cod Army in their clash against Accrington Stanley.
All the staff, and players, at the club hopes that Tyler enjoyed his day with us, and we can’t wait to see you at Highbury again sometime soon!