A nine-year-old from Farnham has already made his debut at Wembley Stadium, walking onto the pitch with Crystal Palace captain and England international Marc Guehi.

Sonny Boyce, a Farnham Town under-nines player and Potters Gate Primary School pupil, was a mascot for the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley last week.

And he had even more reason to celebrate as Palace booked their place in the final with a 3–0 win over Aston Villa on the day.

Sonny had been waiting for over three years to become a mascot due to the backlog created by the Covid pandemic—but his patience paid off, as he was the first to walk out onto the pitch.

It wasn’t too nerve-wracking for Sonny, who had already walked out as a mascot for Farnham Town’s first team alongside midfielder Harry Cooksley. The pair took to the pitch together on April 12 for Farnham Town’s victory over Kingstonian.

That experience gave Sonny the confidence to step out in front of 82,000 people at Wembley—with a smile.

Sonny’s proud dad, Jesse Boyce, 46, said: “It was a dream come true for Sonny, who may now be spotted around Farnham proudly frequently wearing red and blue - when he's not wearing his Farnham Town shirt.”

As he does most years, Sonny made a tin foil FA Cup to wave from the terraces. This year, his creation was even featured on BBC One’s coverage after Palace’s fifth-round win over Millwall.

He also made a YouTube guide for other children on how to make their own foil FA Cup and has since collected over 10 signatures on his homemade trophy from the Crystal Palace first team—including Jean-Philippe Mateta, Daniel Muñoz, and Adam Wharton.

He attended the 2022 FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea aged six, when Palace lost—but this year, he’ll be back at Wembley to watch his team play in the final against Manchester City.

Jesse and Sonny are both Crystal Palace season ticket holders, as well as being fans of Farnham Town FC.