A nine-year-old Newcastle United boy was caught skipping school when he was seen on Sky cameras celebrating his team's victory against Arsenal.
Sammy Scott, from Forest Hall, North Tyneside, traveled to London with his father Mark for the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at the Emirates Stadium.
His mother Claire, 40, told his school that Sammy was ill and would not be able to come as he headed to the capital for Tuesday night's match.
However, they were exposed when Sky cameras showed Sammy celebrating with the hashtag 'Geordie Joy' after Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon scored in Newcastle's 2-0 win.
Sammy was beaming with joy with his fists clenched as Mark's phone blew up with text messages telling him they had been on TV.
An email was also received from Sammy's school saying that his absence would be marked as “unauthorized” after the family was discovered.
talking to the sunMark revealed that the school had actually “been very good to Sammy.”
“His teacher is a big Newcastle fan – we even bumped into him at the Spurs game at the weekend – and he was joking with Sammy,” he said.
Nine-year-old Sammy Scott traveled to London with his father Mark for the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at the Emirates Stadium.
An email from Sammy's school said his absence would be marked as “unauthorized” after the family was caught on Sky cameras.
'It's gone crazy online. It was one of those things that grows like snowballs and completely explodes. People were sending me screenshots of accounts that had millions of followers posting about it, including former players.
'It's been incredible. But Sammy is only nine years old and doesn't realize how big he has become. He doesn't care about anything in the world and continues doing his things normally.
After posting it online, thousands of football fans responded to support Sammy with former England striker Peter Crouch saying: “You've got to cut this guy some slack.” Memories to last a lifetime.'
The email from Benton Dene Primary read: 'Just to inform you that Sammy's absence since Tuesday 7 January 2025 will now be marked as unauthorized.
'This is due to media images showing him in London at a football match. Please contact us at the school if you would like to discuss further.'
Mark revealed that Sammy, who plays twice a week for his local team, has “almost 100 per cent” attendance at school, putting him in the “exceptional group”.
Newcastle's victory leaves them in charge of the semi-final clash with the second leg at St James' Park next month as the club look to win their first trophy in 70 years.
The Magpies reached the final in 2023 but lost to Manchester United in a 2-0 defeat with Casemiro and Marcus Rashford scoring the goals at Wembley Stadium.
But Sammy is praying that his heroes reach the final again and lift their first cup in 70 years.
Mark revealed he couldn't get tickets for last season's final, which left him “devastated”, but he is “hoping we can get there again and get tickets this time”.