Hitchin and Arsenal star Jack Wilshere pays a surprise visit to youngster with muscular dystrophy

All Arsenal fans together: brave Archie Hill with his idol Jack Wilshere. (Image: www.ikinyum.com)

Hitchin lad Jack had asked to meet Archie Hill, who has the life-threatening condition, after hearing how Archie had spoken about the injured Premier League star being his idol during a breakfast television interview with the Hill family in January.

The appearance followed a letter Archie had written to the Prime Minister asking for help with a breakthrough drug on the NHS.

The former Priory School pupil paid a special visit to Archie’s home to surprise the youngster and his big brother Leyton Hill, before inviting the star-struck pair to have a kick-about in their back garden – and then putting them through their paces on their favourite football computer game.

The Gunners midfielder said: “It’s been fantastic meeting Archie. My mum told me about Archie’s interview and I was really impressed by how grown-up he was to go on television and to write to the Prime Minister like that.

“They are great boys.”

Archie’s mum Louisa Hill said: ““We were absolutely staggered when the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign called us to say Jack had been in touch about meeting Archie. We have had to keep the secret for weeks!

“Meeting Jack was absolutely amazing. He spent hours with the boys, in the garden, on the computer and chatting away.

“It is every child’s dream come true to come home from school one day and see their hero standing in the hallway. Archie kept thinking it was a dream and the smile on his face is something we will always treasure.”

Muscular Dystrophy Campaign chief executive Robert Meadowcroft said: “Archie is such a positive boy and braved talking about his muscle-wasting condition on national television. We are absolutely delighted Jack got in touch and asked to meet Archie to tell him just how impressed he was.

“We cannot thank Jack enough.”