Cystic Fibrosis Trust ground collection raises thousands

The money will now be used to assist leading UK scientists in trialling a new gene therapy treatment to reduce damage to sufferers' lungs.

It's estimated that lung disease kills 90 per cent of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, so any progress will give significant hope to the thousands of UK residents who live with the affliction. One young man affected by the hereditary disease is 15-year-old Aaron Hall. Aaron is a keen United fan, loves writing and contributes regularly to the CF Talk magazine. He combined his two great passions before the Newcastle match when he was given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to interview a United star for the publication.

"Meeting and interviewing Michael Carrick was great,” Aaron said. "He was really nice and dead laid-back. It was an awesome experience and I was really lucky to get to go.”

It seems Aaron made quite an impression on the Reds' midfielder, too. "Aaron's a terrific young lad who was really enthusiastic and not afraid to ask tough questions,” Carrick said. "I'm looking forward to reading his piece when the new magazine comes out.

"It can't be easy living with cystic fibrosis and this money will really help the experts in their fight against the disease. United fans should be proud of their efforts and I hope they'll continue to be so generous in the future.

When you meet people like Aaron you understand just how important it is that we do whatever we can to help.”