‘Not the Arsenal one!’ - Young Spurs fan’s brilliant response ahead of mega Premier League stadium challenge

11-year-old Harrison is deaf and plans to visit every Premier League stadium in 36 hours with a sign language stop at each one.
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"Not the Arsenal one," laughs Tottenham Hotspur fan Andrew Nolan when asked which stadiums son Harrison is most excited to visit on their whirlwind 36-hour trip to every Premier League stadium.

Harrison is 11 years old, a keen footballer and Spurs superfan, which explains his feelings towards North London rivals Arsenal. The youngster also lives with hearing loss and has cooked up an ambitious fundraising plan inspired by his love for the sport.

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Harrison, who hopes to play for the England Deaf Football team when he's older, was found to be deaf at just two years old.

His dad Andrew said: "It was down to a speech delay which we had raised to the doctor.

"They suggested having a hearing test and we didn't think too much of it, went along and they said he was deaf. He's had hearing aids since then.

"He goes to a mainstream school but they have a hearing impaired unit attached to it. He's not completely deaf so wears hearing aids and can hear in a quiet room without people shouting.

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"When he's at school he has a hearing loop where he wears it and it connects to a microphone on the teacher. He's got some really good support from school."

When not in the classroom Harrison loves to be on the football pitch and is a blossoming midfielder, having found the net in a couple of fixtures recently.

Harrison is a big Spurs fan and will fundraise for The National Deaf Children’s SocietyHarrison is a big Spurs fan and will fundraise for The National Deaf Children’s Society
Harrison is a big Spurs fan and will fundraise for The National Deaf Children’s Society

At the end of July, just before the Premier League season returns, Harrison and his dad will visit each top-flight club's stadium. At each stop, they plan to jump out of the car for a photo and to film a short video of the youngster saying the stop's name in sign language.

Andrew explained: "We were sitting watching Saturday Night Takeaway and they do a segment on there about people doing stuff for charity.

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"We got talking about it and said, why don't we do something? We were looking at the Premier League at the same time and came up with the idea.

The challenge will end at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in JulyThe challenge will end at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in July
The challenge will end at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in July

"We wanted to do it in 24 hours but it works out to be 20 odd hours driving so we extended it to 36 to have a sleepover at some point in the journey.

"We don't know the sign language for a lot of them but Harrison's been tasked to learn the BSL for each of the stadiums to combine the clips and have the proof we did it!"

The duo will start in the North East at Newcastle United bright and early at 6 am before making their way down to Leeds, across to the North West then through Birmingham and via Brighton to finish at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where they frequently attend matches - a route mapped out by Harrison himself.

The big Premier League road trip will take place on July 24, 2023 and you can sponsor Harrison on his fundraising page.

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