The moment Dan James made an autistic Wales fan’s year

A Wales fan was thrilled when she met Dan James at Elland Road after the Leeds v Swansea game on the weekend.

The Welsh international went above and beyond in making the meeting an incredibly special one.

Steffan Davies, who is a Swansea City fan took his two daughters, Allie and Ceri, to Elland Road to watch the game.

It was a special treat for Steffan’s girls who both live in Scotland – and an especial thrill for Allie, who is autistic – especially as she got to meet her favourite player, Dan James.

“The youngest (Allie) is autistic and football is absolutely everything to her,” said Steffan. “She would happily class herself as a Jack, but is a big supporter of Cymru and a proud member of the Red Wall.

“This has developed into a fascination with Leeds United, especially Joe Rodon, Ethan Ampadu, and Dan James. Last season, they came down to attend the home game against Leeds, so this time around, I thought it would be good to have an away day at Elland Road.”

Post match, Steffan and his daughters made their way down to the area where supporters were waiting to catch a glimpse of the home players as they left.

“Unfortunately, just one Leeds player approached the small crowd,” he said. “To say my daughter was upset at not even getting a glimpse of the Leeds players she so desperately wanted to see, would be a major understatement.

“Dejected, I said we should head back to our car and make our way for some food. As we walked towards our car, in the general supporters’ car park, she became overwhelmed when she spotted Dan James getting into his car, just a few feet away from ours.

“She called out to him, and he acknowledged her which sent her into a full on autistic stim, bouncing up and down like tigger.”

The Wales star couldn’t have been any more gracious to Steffan and his daughters.

“Dan walked over and asked if Allie was OK, whilst I calmed her down, he struck up a conversation with my eldest daughter.” recalled Steffan. “Once she was calm, DJ started talking with her, it was a really heartwarming moment.

“He was so calming and clearly appreciative of the situation, he really couldn’t do enough for her, signing three autographs and posing for numerous photos.

“Before heading off, he shook all of us by the hand, and asked again if she was OK. Then he got into his car and before driving off, he wound his window down and flashed a massive grin and gave us a cheery wave.

“Daniel James clearly hasn’t forgotten where he came from and as the saying goes ‘Once a Jack, always a Jack’, this certainly is the case with DJ.

“It meant the world not just to my daughters, but to me also. Memories are made of this.”

Steffan added that a reporter from the Yorkshire Evening Post had clearly witnessed the event as he referenced it in his article, even making it part of the newspaper’s headline.

Tomorrow marks the start of Autism Awareness Month. Find out more at: https://autism.org.uk