Shropshire Star

You'll Never Walk Alone: Shrewsbury cancer sufferer, 19, meets idol Steven Gerrard

A poorly Shrewsbury teenager knows she'll never walk alone after meeting her footballing idol Steven Gerrard.

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Cara Wall from Shrewsbury meets her hero Steven Gerrard

Football coach and Liverpool fan Cara Wall, 19, who has been suffering with cancer of the soft tissue, was able to meet the Reds legend thanks to charity Starlight, which makes wishes come true for children and young people with illnesses.

It was a dream moment for Cara, who enjoyed picking the former England skipper's brains about his football career and coaching. The Rangers boss even said he would share session plans with Cara for when she returns to coaching with Shrewsbury firm Passmaster.

She said: "We just discussed about football and about the Liverpool legends game that was coming up.

"I've supported Liverpool all my life but I never got to see him play in the Premier League. My mum's a Liverpool fan as well.

"We were in with him for about 45 minutes. I wasn't expecting that long. He offered to send across some of his session plans, it was really nice.

Cara Wall from Shrewsbury meets her hero Steven Gerrard

"I was asking him questions about who his favourite opponent was and the best team to play against."

Cara was first diagnosed with stage four cancer in December 2018, which came as a huge blow as she was enjoying her coaching as well as banging in the goals while playing up front for Shrewsbury Juniors Ladies.

After several months of treatment, she got the all clear in July last year, only for the cancer to return in October, just as she was preparing to go on holiday.

She's just finished six rounds of chemotherapy, but radiotherapy treatment will have to wait until the Covid-19 crisis has passed.

Amazingly, Cara was still playing football as recently as January this year, and in the 2018/19 season she only missed out on being top scorer for her club by one goal, despite being out of action for half of the season.

It's been tough going, but Cara has he sights set on getting back out on the pitch.

"That's the aim," she said. "A career in football. That's what I'm hoping for."

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