ALMOST half a century after he first stood on the terraces at St James' Park, cancer victim Alf Brown was treated to a day to remember by the Newcastle team.

Jackie Milburn was Alf's hero when, as a teenager living in Crook, County Durham, he stood in the Paddock End with the 1950s Toon Army.

Now he is an Alan Shearer fan and was thrilled to be a guest of the Magpies at their Forest Hall training ground to see manager Bobby Robson put his players through their paces.

The trip was arranged by staff at the Butterwick Hospice at Bishop Auckland, where Alf goes every Friday.

He has battled lung cancer for two years and can no longer make it up the steps to watch games at St James' Park, so follows every match on radio and television.

Alf, of Rydal Drive, Crook, was a promising centre forward as a boy.

He was shocked to learn he had cancer after a routine chest x-ray by doctors preparing to amputate his leg.

Alf said: "It came out of the blue and I was really down for a while. But I am still here and I have now had one of the best days of my life.

"Bobby Robson stopp-ed to say hello and I have left his book for the players to sign. I won't ever forget it."