A six-year-old boy who became a “viral sensation” is “winning hearts” across the city as he met two Liverpool legends. Over the last few months, Isaac Kearney from Kirkby has captured the hearts of Merseyside and people across the world.
Isaac was born with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, a rare genetic disorder, meaning he develops at a slower rate than other children his age. His mum Melissa and dad Alan have tried to highlight the day-to-day realities for Isaac through social media. Both of his TikTok and Instagram pages are run by Melissa.
Isaac’s love of Liverpool FC has made him a much-loved member of the club’s fanbase too. He was the star of a video last year that featured Mohamed Salah and Virgil Van Dijk.
Isaac has also been a mascot and visited the club’s training ground in Kirkby. Liverpool musician Jamie Webster came to his house last month and they were videoed singing together with their guitars.
Isaac and his family had another special day on Saturday when they went to Anfield for Liverpool’s home match against Ipswich Town. In a video on his Instagram page, Isaac was filmed walking into a hospitality area carrying his guitar.
He was quickly recognised by legendary Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar, who picked up Isaac and took him into the main area with other ticket holders. A club official introduced Isaac to them as a “viral sensation”.
Isaac then met Jamie again as well as Sir Kenny Dalglish for the first time. As seen in their Instagram post, the former Liverpool striker and manager gifted the family two framed Liverpool shirts.
One was signed by Dalglish himself while the other was signed by Steven Gerrard. Isaac, Melissa and Alan were delighted. In the accompanying caption, Melissa said: “Another unbelievable day meeting King Kenny.”
People flooded the family with support in the comments section. One said: “How lucky, King Kenny is a legend, so happy for Isaac.” Another said: “I think this is so deserved and super nice for Isaac and his dad and mum and sister.” A third added: “You keep singing and winning hearts, Isaac!”
Speaking to the ECHO earlier this month, Melissa said she was made aware of Isaac’s condition before he was born and wanted to use social media to educate others about it. She said: “There was a medical team waiting to sit down with us and that’s when they told us about his diagnosis. I think I was about 34, 35 weeks pregnant. That phone call completely changed our life.
“I got a bit frightened when they told me. Probably the best thing that we’ve got from this attention is raising all this awareness. It’s been amazing. He’s just the cheekiest little boy you’ll ever meet. He has no filter but is so funny, so full of life. He’s just so oblivious to it all. He’s living his best life.”
