A YOUNG boy from Colchester with an incurable heart disease who thought he'd never play football again is set to get back on the pitch.
Harry Law, eight, was born with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition affecting the main pumping chamber of the heart.
Due to his condition, Harry was never able to play football carelessly and always had the fear of collapsing.
To help prevent side effects, he had an implanted defibrillator (ICD) fitted.
The small device helps to regulate abnormal heart rhythms.
With the device fitted, playing football still seemed impossible, as it can get rough on the field.
But thanks to the managers of the Colchester u9s league the football community came together to help the young football fanatic buy a special protective vest.
His father Jay was very moved to see how his son was supported during this difficult time.
He said: “I spoke about it in the manager’s chat and asked if anyone knows where I can get protection for his ICD and everyone said to me they would all like to chip in together.
“All the under-nines managers from around contributed money and raised £560.
“Obviously, not many kids of Harry’s age have an ICD and are playing football. He’s probably the only one I’ve heard about.”
Once Harry has recovered from the surgery and the protection vest has arrived, he will be able to play again in about eight weeks' time.
The vest will be custom-made for him, by the company Vital Beat, based in the Netherlands, which offers protective clothing for medical devices.
Jay said: “At one point we thought that Harry would never be able to play football again after having his ICD operation. We were told it would be safe to play but we were always worried as you never know.
“There’s always a worry for me anyway, but it is a massive weight off of our shoulders and we feel more pleased that he can carry on doing what he loves.”
The donations leave enough money to buy multiple protective vests for Harry, so once he has outgrown the first, his parents will be able to order a bigger size for their son to keep playing.
Jay added: “I’d just like to say thank you to all the managers in the Coastal District league.”
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