Young Dons George Bond and Joe Tynan are teaming up to introduce a match day treat for fellow Wimbledon supporters – by setting up a sweet stall at Saturday’s game!
Both pupils at St Andrews School in Leatherhead, George, who plays for our academy Under-13s, and Joe, a Dons supporter since he was five, came up with the idea of setting up a stall at Wimbledon matches.
It will be open from 1.00 pm on Saturday, based close to the back bar/entrance to the Chemflow End. Though fans can buy sweets or chocolates from the stall until close to kick-off, don’t leave it too late to get your treats for the game!
George’s father Phil said: “My boy, who is 12, and his friend Joe go down to the sweet shop at half-time of every match, so they came up with the idea of setting up a stall at the ground. They thought it would help raise some money for Wimbledon, so we approached the club about it and it’s all moved on from there.
“The stock won’t be huge to begin with as they are just starting off, to see how it all goes. The stock will include Mars Bars, Snickers, Maltesers, and there will be boiled sweets, including Werther’s Original, and also sweets for the young kids, including Haribo. They will have a little trestle table out by the back bar and they are going to drape an AFC Wimbledon flag over the top of it.”
“We have Season Tickets now so we are there at the games anyway. George trains with the academy on Saturdays and he finishes at 12 noon, so we normally go straight down to the ground and watch a game in the front bar before Wimbledon play. We are down there most of the time anyway, so it gives him something to do now – he has a job on a Saturday!
As a centre-back, George’s favourite player is Paul Kalambayi and he has already shown he can lead the way to success by captaining the Under-13s!
The picture above shows George in action for Wimbledon and click on the link to see Joe with a Wimbledon hero from last season – Aaron Ramsdale.
Joe’s father John hopes his son will be very busy on Saturday and he believes it’s a great idea to have two young Wimbledon supporters chipping in to help their club.
“I am hoping that it’s going to be a hectic Saturday for them! I know the club is looking for all the finance it can get at the moment. I know this isn’t going to be life-changing, but it’s nice that a couple of young lads have come forward to do this. I think it’s a nice story that they are thinking, ‘what can we do to help the club out?’
“Joe sits in the stand with me at every home game because I’ve been a season ticket holder since the club was reformed. George is down the other end, so at half-time the boys meet-up and run down the shop to get their sweets, before going back to their seats and meeting up after the game. Everyone is a winner and I think it’s a great idea. We’ve got the Haribo sweets for the younger fans, but also the Werther’s Originals for older fans!
“I’ve been a Wimbledon supporter since 1983 and Joe hasn’t had much choice unfortunately! Joe enjoys his Saturdays at the game though and he’s Wimbledon through and through. His first game was back in the days when Jack Midson was playing as he was his favourite player. He was at Wembley for the play-off final and he absolutely loves the away games. George and Joe have been friends since their first year at Primary School. With George’s involvement in the academy, their love for the club has increased over the years. They are big Wimbledon supporters now and it’s great that they get to do this together now as well to help out the club.”