Zebo to young fan Hanna: ‘I’ll miss you too rockstar’
MUNSTER fans may have had little to celebrate on St Stephen’s Day, with their side suffering a home defeat to arch rivals Leinster, but for one lucky north Kerry fan it was a day to remember at Thomond Park thanks to the one and only Simon Zebo.
Seven-year-old Hanna O’Connell from Abbeydorney was at the sell-out match with her mum Marisa and aunt Laura, hoping to see her hero Zebo in action before he departs for France at the end of the season.
Hoping to make her feelings known about his impending departure, Hanna brought along a hand-made poster which read: ‘We’ll miss you Zeebs”, complete with sad face emoji. With front row seats in the North terrace, Hanna was thrilled to catch a glimpse of her hero during the warm up, but little could she have imagined what would happen next.
“Hanna was getting a little frustrated that Zebo wasn’t seeing her sign so she decided to shout his name. He turned around and gave her the thumbs up, but when he got a proper look at her sign he came over and gave her a big hug and told her it was awesome,” Hanna’s mum Marisa explained.
“She was so excited and completely lost for words, which anyone who knows Hanna will tell you is not an easy feat. He was so lovely to her and posed for a picture, thanked her and gave her a big hug before rejoining the players.”
But the best was yet to come for Hanna, with the Munster star posting their picture to his Instagram and Twitter accounts later that evening, along with the heart-warming message: “I’ll miss you too little Rockstar.” Not only was the photo ‘ liked’ by over 15,000 people, but Hanna and her hero made headlines on a number of news sites.
“It was such a crazy day and one we will never forget. Hanna got to say a personal goodbye, but for him to acknowledge her on his own social media accounts was just the icing on the cake.”