• Football

Fan pays £10,000 to play with the big boys

ESPN staff
August 7, 2013

Most fans dream of playing for their club but for 40-year-old James Gorfin that dream came true at the weekend when he made a substitute appearance for Macclesfield in a friendly against Stoke City - but it cost him £10,000.

Gorfin's big day was cut short by injury - his outing cost him around £1000 a minute - but he told the Macclesfield Express he did not regret any of it.

For his money he spent a week with the squad, being put through sprint drills, shooting practice, short-sided matches, before his first-team appearance.

He aggravated a groin strain picked up in practice as he tried to get on the end of a cross. "I tried to put a burst on and when I stretched, that's when it went, I felt it straight away," he told the newspaper. "I knew straight away I'd have to come off; [the physio] iced me up but all I can do is rest it, I'm limping around and it's still hurting now I'm back at work."

Gorfin said the pace of the game was a surprise. "I think everyone reckons they could do better when they're watching a game. You think you'd have loads of time on the ball but it's not as easy as that. It's pretty mental how quick the game is, and I did get smashed by one of the Stoke lads when I got one of my passes away."

In June, Macclesfield announced a plan to raise £20,000 by offering one person the chance to play for the club in a league or cup fixture but the idea was soon shelved after negative reaction. Instead, the lower-price sale of a game in a friendly match was quietly brought in instead.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd
Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices