The founder of the Newcastle United Blog has said it would be "so special" to see the team win the Carabao Cup as he battles terminal cancer.
To Toon fans around the world, Ed Harrison is known as the man behind the website nufcblog.com which launched in 2007 to give fans a say on the latest Newcastle news. But for the last 11 years, Ed has battled aggressive prostate cancer which has now spread and is said to be "terminal."
The 78-year-old, who now lives in North Carolina, has used his blog as a way of updating fans on his cancer journey and told Chronicle Live been touched by the wave of support from Geordies.
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"When you are struggling with health issues, it’s always uplifting to receive messages from Geordies wishing you the best and I have been lucky in getting my fair share of those over the years," he said.
"One of the things about Geordies is they have hearts of gold, and that has been so noticeable with the heartfelt messages I continue to receive from people around the world."
And now as Newcastle United gets set to take on Manchester United at Wembley on Sunday, Ed opened up about how it feels to see the club compete in the historic cup final.
"It's amazing what the lads have done this season," he said.
"To be fifth and in our first final since 1999 is just unbelievable. I am absolutely delighted that we have finally reached a cup final - the first since 1999 when we were beaten 2-0 by Manchester United in the FA Cup.
"With any luck, we can beat the Red Devils and that would be something so special for our fans. To win again at Wembley would set us on course to become a dominant force, once again, in European Football.
"[But] win or lose I am so proud of Eddie Howe, his coaching staff, and our players for turning around our fortunes so quickly. Eddie Howe has done a magnificent job, backed fully by our new ambitious, and rich owners.
"When you think we were still in the bottom three just 12 months ago, the turnaround has been remarkable, to say the very least."
As a teenager, Ed was on United’s books and played alongside the likes of Bob Moncur on the Newcastle Juniors (U18) side. He said the former Newcastle captain recently reached out to him after hearing of his cancer battle.
"One of the advantages of entering the later stages of cancer is that your priorities in life change, and for the better," Ed said.
"A couple of weeks ago, I received a heartfelt letter from Bob Moncur. When Bob first arrived at Newcastle in the summer of 1960, I had also joined Newcastle as an amateur while still at school.
"Bobby and I played on the same Newcastle Junior side for that season. Even back then, Bob had leadership skills, and it was great to see him become the Newcastle icon he has become - he was not just a good player - he’s also a terrific person."
Ed has been married to Newcastle-born wife Madeline for 50 years and the couple has three children, with son Neil taking over the blog four years ago as Ed's treatment took its toll. Ed said although he doesn't know what the long-term future holds for his blog, the support he has received from Newcastle fans has meant so much to him.
"The readers have been very supportive in every way," he said.
"I often get messages from around the world and the messages are from the heart."
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