A LIFELONG West Ham fan was granted his dying wish as he witnessed a piece of football history at the final match played at the club's current stadium.

Graham White, 68, from Canvey, had to give up his season ticket at the Boleyn Ground, in Upton Park, East London, after he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2014.

With the Hammers due to play their final game at the stadium, after 112 years, ahead of moving to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, friends and family started a Facebook campaign to get him to the already sold out match.

A post on Facebook by Sue Nash, chairman of South Essex Motor Neurone Disease, was shared more than 11,000 times.

It led to the football club offering Graham and his grandson James, 17, a ticket to Tuesday's match against Manchester United.

But West Ham captain Mark Noble went a step further the day before the match, giving the pair use of his private box at the stadium for the historic occasion.

Graham's wife Pat said: “It just goes to show we are not a nation of bad people. It was so good of him to invite Graham to his box.

“The atmosphere was just amazing and it was a brilliant result at the end. Graham was absolutely ecstatic. It couldn’t have been a better birthday present.

“His team won and he couldn’t have been in a better place.”

By coincidence, the game was played on Graham's birthday and he was treated to the perfect present when West Ham won 3-2 to sign off from the Boleyn Ground in style.

The Hammers had taken an early lead in the match, but trailed 2-1 before scoring two goals in the last 15 minutes to send the sell-out crowd, including Graham and James, into raptures.

Mrs White said: "He’s still buzzing. He’s been reading his Facebook messages and re-watching the game on his phone.

“In truth, I’m not a football fan. I would normally go off and do the ironing.

“But we had Sue and a few friends and family round. We had a bit of a meal and had the wine flowing.

“We had the TV on full blast and all the supporters were singing their heads off.”

Despite not getting home until 2am, grandson James still managed to pass his driving test at 12.30pm the next day, capping off a great week for the family.

West Ham will play at the Olympic Stadium from August onwards.