Disgrace Arsenal! Melbourne captain Max Gawn is hailed by fans after staying 105 MINUTES to sign autographs for kids… after Gunners stars appeared to ignore the young mascot
- Max Gawn has been praised by fans after an autograph signing at the marathon
- The Melbourne captain lingered for 105 minutes to sign autographs
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Melbourne hero Max Gawn may still have a knee injury, but the premiership-winning captain showed he has plenty of time for young footy fans by completing an autograph marathon on Wednesday.
Gawn, who suffered the devastating injury in round 2, attended Dees’ junior clinic and made sure no kid was left without an autograph or selfie after the session.
“Ninety minutes after the end, Max Gawn stays on Casey Fields and makes sure every young Demon gets their jumper signed,” the Demons wrote on Twitter.
He then stayed for a further 15 minutes to sign footballs, boots and Guernseys and pose for selfies, in a classy act that fans couldn’t stop praising.
“This is what a leader looks like,” one fan posted. ‘To be a role model for his team and society.’ Another added: “Just as any good captain should.”
Melbourne captain Max Gawn was left for 105 minutes to sign autographs
Fans have been praising the premiership-winning captain for his selfless performance on Wednesday
“Max proved once again today what a great leader he is,” wrote a third fan. Making time for each child to feel special! Such an impressive person.’
“We were his second to last signing of the day. Kids were so patient,” another fan posted.
‘Max was really charming and nice to the end, even happy to chat about cycling with my non-football loving husband. Thank you MFC. What a great day for the kids (and me!).’
Gawn’s act of generosity comes 24 hours after Premier League leaders Arsenal were criticized after a video came to light of their stars ignoring a young mascot while signing her shirt.
In the video, manager Mikel Arteta and his players can be seen passing eight-year-old Olivia Murray and writing on the top of the replica, but apparently not acknowledging the youngster as she stared at them in admiration.
One of the stars was Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard, chosen by Olivia as her favorite player on the match schedule, who approached her with his earphones in before quickly signing the shirt and walking off.
But after criticism from celebrities including Nick Knowles, Laura Woods and Piers Morgan, Olivia’s dad has defended the players – insisting the footage was just a “tiny window” into her day. He also shared a photo of her holding Odegaard’s hand.
The generous move comes after Arsenal players were criticized for ignoring a young mascot
“My daughter had a blast being the mascot for @Arsenal,” Mr Murray tweeted. “There was only a small window to meet the players and she really enjoyed it. Odegaard is her favorite player, so it was very special to keep his hand on the field.’
Arsenal captioned the “making memories with our mascot” video and shared it on Twitter on Sunday.
But it caused an immediate backlash, with critics including TV presenter Nick Knowles.
He wrote: “I suggest @Arsenal that you bring her and her family back and give your players another chance to be decent human beings. I’ve been told”.
Lifelong Gunners fan Piers Morgan added, “Come on guys, at least one of you say hello to her?!!”