DIE-HARD fans are being given the chance to buy their very own piece of North-East footballing history.

Two 15-carat gold FA cup winners' medals which belonged to one of the region's top Victorian soccer stars are going on sale.

The medals were presented to George Hedley who was born in South Bank in 1876. He won the cup winners' medals with two different clubs during his illustrious career.

The first was in 1899 when he played for Sheffield United.

In the FA Cup final the team beat Derby County 4-1 and in 1908 when George was playing with Wolverhampton Wanderers, his team beat Newcastle United 3-1.

Each of George's medals is expected to fetch between £4,000 and £6,000 when they are put up for auction at Christies in London on September 27.

A spokesman for the auction house said they hoped the historic British sporting medals would stay in the UK.

He said: "We are expecting a lot of interest in the medals. We have contacted clubs and museums across the country as well as fans we are aware of. "We like things like this to go to good English homes where people appreciate what they stand for.

"We also would like them to be open for the public to see."

In the past, football medals have raised hundreds of thousands of pounds. An Everton winners medal made a fantastic £16,500 and a world cup medal owned by Gordon Banks was sold last year for a record breaking £124,000.

The Christies spokesman said: "Football medals are what everyone wants to collect.

"Very few people will ever take part on the FA cup but this is a way for them to have a bit of the glory."

As well as playing for the two FA cup winning teams, George Hedley also played for Southampton and later managed Bristol City until 1915 when the First World War halted league football.

From 1918 to 1941 he ran a pub in Bristol before returning Wolverhampton to run a boarding house until his death in 1942.