A small but classy gesture from Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim created memories that Partington & Carrington youngsters will never forget.
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim pictured with Partington & Carrington FC Wanderers under-8s
Ruben Amorim created a lasting memory for the Partington & Carrington youngsters.
(Image: Freedom Football DC UK)
Littleton Road has been the birth place of many Manchester United careers and dreams over the years.
The Salford site has played host to the likes of Eric Cantona, David Beckham and many other famous faces, meaning every youngster that now graces the pitches at the United training academy has a story to aspire to try and replicate.
Last month, the venue played host to the Manchester Youth Super League's Champions Cup finals with the pitches flooded with youngsters looking to clinch some end-of-season silverware.
Among the teams involved on the evening of Monday, May 12, were Partington & Carrington FC, who were formed by Freedom Football only last year to have a localised club to serve children who were previously choosing to go to clubs in Urmston and Altrincham.
Partington & Carrington had two teams in attendance at Littleton Road - Under-8s Argyle and Under-8s Wanderers - and it was the latter that found itself going up against one of United head coach Ruben Amorim's two sons.
Wanderers were in a final against Alderley United and Amorim turned up to watch his son and the rest of the action unfold. Arriving 15 minutes before kick-off at 7pm, Amorim was soon spotted by Partington & Carrington chairman and coach Matthew Sollitt, 36, who approached the United head coach to see if he would agree to a post-match photograph with his team.
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"Honestly, he was an absolute gentlemen," Sollitt told the Manchester Evening News. "I am a big United fan myself, so maybe I was probably calm about it.
"Basically, to set the scene, kick-off was at 7pm and we got there at 4.15pm [overseeing other games] and he probably came about 6.45pm. He had a bright white T-shirt on, his handsome haircut and his shades on.
"He came strolling across with his wife and kids and we had a team that had just been beaten in the final previously and all the kids that had played in that saw him on the way out. They had just been beaten on penalties and Amorim stopped for every kid. I only found that out afterwards.
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim pictured with Partington & Carrington FC Wanderers under-8s
Ruben Amorim posed for a pictures with the Wanderers' Under-8s after their win over Alderley United.
(Image: Freedom Football DC UK)
"And then as he came over, I spoke to their coach, Jack, who is a top man at Alderley United, and I said to him, 'Jack, do you want to sort a photo out for afterwards, win or lose?' and he was like, 'Yes, ask him'.
"So I went up to him and said, 'Ruben, I'm sorry to bother you, but can I arrange a photo with our team for after the game?' He said it was no problem."
For Sollitt and his team, it turned out they would pose for the post-match photograph in victorious circumstances. They beat Alderley United 2-0 to clinch the trophy and Amorim was only too happy to fulfil the pre-match agreement.
"We played the game and ended up beating them 2-0," Sollitt continued. "It was a game that felt like it needed a mistake or maybe a worldie, and one of our kids found the top corner from about 15, 20 yards out. We went on to win 2-0 after that.
"Amorim went on the balcony after the game, we all got our medals and trophies and we went through a back door and down the stairs. But before I had even had a conversation with him, he had already planned with the league organisers to take a photo with all the teams. They all clapped him and started singing about United and the Amorim song.
"Even talking about it now, both as a United fan and being chairman of a football club, it's absolutely unbelievable. What an experience."
A view of the Littleton Road pitches from above.
The Littleton Road pitches have played host to the start of many prosperous careers.
(Image: Joe Prior/Visionhaus/Getty Images.)
With Amorim and fellow United representatives in attendance, Partington & Carrington's youngsters could have easily been distracted by the high-profile observers. However, they were motivated by the desire to get the better of Amorim's son's team.
Explaining how the youngsters felt pre-match after catching a glimpse of Amorim, Sollitt said: "To be honest, I think they were just more bothered about beating his son for the sake of it! They didn't say those words, but it wasn't like, 'I want to showcase my talent in front of Amorim'. it was we want to beat his son.
"I thought that was quite a good mentality because we are not a win at all-costs team. The only time we really want to win is maybe in a final or a tournament. We are nine-month season and for eight-and-a-half of those we spend the time developing, changing the kids' positions, making sure they learn the game and be a good child, basically. That is our aim.
"But when we get to a final, we want to win it. The kids were really calm but very excited after seeing him. Once we told them that we were going to get a photo afterwards, I think they calmed down."
When the opportunity came to get up close and personal to the United chief, however, Sollitt's players were in awe of the 40-year-old.
"They had pens and all sorts," he explained. "I just told them to get a photo with him, say thank you, have a quick chat and give him a high-five. That was where everyone else saw him doing it with us, but he had already agreed to it.
Ruben Amorim poses for a selfie with a supporter outside Old Trafford.
Ruben Amorim is renowned for wanting to engage with Manchester United's supporters.
(Image: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images.)
"He then high-fived literally every kid. A lot of our parents stayed behind as well to watch. I stayed behind for a little bit.
"And the fact he was at one of Manchester United's training academies as well, a place full of history, where a lot of superstar footballers and famous people have played and grown up there, for our kids to go and play there and get a photo with the current manager, it doesn't get much better than that."
Although the Under-8s Wanderers side were victorious at Littleton Road, the Under-8s Argyle were beaten on penalties. But Amorim's presence and interaction with them soon meant their spirits were lifted.
Explaining how the youngsters reacted to engaging with the United boss, who had overseen a 2-0 loss to West Ham United at Old Trafford just 24 hours earlier, Sollitt recalled: "They were just in awe of him. I have to reiterate that our team, the hour before, lost on penalties and we must have had three or four kids crying.
"They had finished top of their league and they ended up getting beat in the final. Because they saw Amorim, it was all forgotten. I got messages in our parents' chat and they were all posting: 'Oh my God, we've just met Amorim!'
"I didn't see this until after the 7pm game, so I was non the wiser, other than that I had an inkling that he was coming to watch his son play. They were just in awe of him, and the fact the previous team had got beat and then this made their day, it is just a memory.
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim pictured with Partington & Carrington FC Wanderers under-8s
Coaches Matthew Sollitt (top left) and Adam Cree (top right) pose with Ruben Amorim under the Under-8s Wanderers players.
(Image: Freedom Football DC UK)
"I have got a smile on my face talking about it now. Even when I put the photo into all our other teams, there were non-Manchester United fans who were like, 'Wow, that's brilliant'. I think most fans look at coaches as a coach; they don't look at them as a person. I was guilty of that in my younger days.
"But now that I am older and I am a coach, I am not as biased as a Manchester United fan. It was really good to see that he was there, just as a good person.
"He didn't have to stay. I know some might say he had to because everyone else was there. His son had just lost 2-0 in a really good, competitive game that was played fairly and we scored a really good goal."
Sollitt founded Freedom Football in 2022 with the ambition of creating a different culture and approach in comparison to other football clubs at grassroots level. Alongside his business partner, Adam Cree, he is motivated to oversee an environment where children can develop their football skills without the pressure of having to win at all costs.
“Freedom Football is our business," he explained. "All our coaches are paid, we're not volunteers.
"Basically, we charge £35 a month - an extra £10 in comparison to your typical grassroots club - but there are no volunteers, no mums and dads who put their kids up top every week. We existed to remove those politics of your typical grassroots clubs and teams.
"Freedom Football is the name. I set it up three years ago. I just wanted to let the kids play; we don't shout and scream at them. We play to develop; we don't play to win at all costs.
"Then we set up the Partington & Carrington Football Club last year to just give us a better identity, more location and also receive some help from Trafford Council and Trafford Leisure. We are able to get Partington Sports Village now, which was a brand-new £1million pitch that was built by the football foundation.
"We have really grown since then and been able to give more accessible and better opportunities for the kids in the area. Before we set that up, people were leaving Partington & Carrington to go to clubs in Urmston and Altrincham. But now they are staying where they live and where they are from and play with us."