Spanish trip to meet Beckham is just the tonic (From The Bolton News)

Spanish trip to meet Beckham is just the tonic

12:48pm Friday 1st June 2007 in

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WHEN David Beckham decided he would like to play for England once more, one of the first people he told was 16-year-old Samantha Nash.

Well ahead of the welcome public announcement, Samantha was told the exclusive news by the footballing icon himself - in Madrid!

She and her twin sister Gineen were VIP guests at the Bernabeu Stadium in the Spanish capital in a trip organised by the charity, Starlight Foundation.

Both the girls have one of the world's rarest genetic conditions called Hydroxy Glutaric Acid Uria, which is gradually robbing them of speech, memory and mobility. Neither is expected to live beyond the age of 25.

The condition puts urine back into the body, damaging the nervous system. There is only one other child in the country with it, a boy, and only 30 other children around the world.

The girls have a mental age of between three and six years, but are lively and loving.

Gineen is a big fan of pop star Gareth Gates, and Samantha adores David Beckham. So, their parents, Lorna and Stanley, applied to the Foundation - which tries to make the wishes of terminally ill children come true - nearly two years ago, asking if the girls could meet their favourites.

While the Foundation was hopeful of arranging to meet Gareth Gates, they explained the obvious difficulties in meeting David Beckham. But they always try their best on all the wishes.

In the event, although he sent signed CDs and pictures, Gates was unable to meet his local No.1 fan.

But the really big surprise was that the Foundation arranged for the whole family - including the girls' brother Richard, aged 13, and two-year-old sister Holly - to fly out to Madrid to meet the soccer star.

Now back at home in Leigh, Mr Nash said: "It was a wonderful trip. We took the girls' wheelchairs with us and had help throughout.

"We were in a very nice four-star hotel and really well looked after."

The highlight of the trip, however, was the stadium visit for a top match clash when Samantha was delighted to find that David Beckham was not playing on the pitch but sitting with them in the VIP box.

"He was gorgeous!" said Samantha slowly, a wide smile breaking across her face.

He sat with the girls and their family, happy to be photographed, and gave them a signed cap and shirt.

Mrs Nash said: "Because the girls' speech is not too good now, he was very patient and prepared to really listen to what they had to say. He was lovely with them.

"Then Victoria came into the box with Brooklyn and she was really nice too."

During the visit, Samantha not only gave the star a big cuddle but was able to painstakingly ask him if he wanted to be the England manager one day.

"He told her that he thought it was too hard a job sometimes," explained Mrs Nash. "But then he said that he wanted to play for England again - and just after we got back home, the story was in all the newspapers that he was going to!"

In spite of a deterioration in the health of both girls, who are now permanently attached to feeding tubes and have spells of being quite poorly, the trip has obviously raised their spirits.

"It was a dream come true", added Mrs Nash. And the bright eyes and beaming smiles of her daughters agree more than words can say.