Wearing his father's famous number nine shirt, an emotional Jay Stansfield received a standing ovation on Sunday afternoon after he scored a hat-trick in his final game for boyhood club Exeter City.
Back in September, the 20-year-old forward secured a season-long loan move to League One from Premier League side Fulham.
It was a deal that meant a lot to both Stansfield and the club. Back in 2010, Exeter retired the number nine shirt as a mark of respect to former striker Adam Stansfield, who tragically lost his battle with cancer at the age of 31.
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Stansfield, who scored 39 goals in 160 appearances during a four-year spell at Exeter, sadly passed away in August 2010 following a battle with cancer.
Over a decade later and Exeter brought the shirt number out of retirement for Adam's son, Jay, before announcing his heartwarming arrival with a touching presentation at St James Park.
"It means a lot. I know the pressure is going to be high if I had the number nine shirt or if I didn't. So I thought it was the right thing for me to do," Stansfield said.
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"To be able to come in and take the shirt, I'll be proud to wear it and hopefully I can follow in the footsteps of what he did and hopefully go beyond.
"When I was at the academy and when he used to play here I dreamed of playing in the number nine shirt. To be able to come here and wear it, I hope I can do him proud."
Stansfield has gone on to score nine goals during the 2022/23 campaign, including a hat-trick in Sunday's final League One game of the season – a memorable 3-2 win against Morecambe at St James Park.
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The 20-year-old appeared emotional as he was replaced by Sonn Cox in the 74th minute.
"Not a dry eye in the house, including Jay himself," the Exeter Twitter account wrote after he scored his third goal in the 70th minute. "It's straight to the Stansfield Stand again, where he points up to his Dad's name.
"Oh Jay, he'd be so proud of you."
Nearly two-and-a-half hours after the full-time and Stansfield was still signing autographs for supporters young and old.
"It was an amazing day, not just for me but the fans too," he said after the final whistle. "It's a privilege to wear this shirt."
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One of the best stories of the season, for sure.
Featured Image Credit: Twitter/@BroadcastMooseTopics: League One, Premier League, Fulham
