Generous well-wishers have raised nearly £6,000 for a cash strapped Liverpool FC fan folk hero in a pub beer garden.
Well-known Stephen Campbell, 57, ended up on the streets in April last year when he was unable to pay for his rent and monthly bills.
Better known by his nickname "Jaffa" because of his ginger hair, he didn’t tell anyone that he had fallen on hard times.
Now Jaffa tries to make ends meet by selling socks, boxer shorts and tea towels in the pubs around Merseyside , living on just £5 a day for food.
Despite being almost penniless, Jaffa has never signed on the dole.
Over the last year or so the keen photographer, who has completed many bike rides and runs for charity, set up a makeshift home on a patch of grass behind the Red Lion pub in Litherland, where he has lived come rain or shine.
But even these rudimentary digs look short-lived, with the landlord set to leave in the week before Christmas, making his future uncertain.
Kind-hearted pals have stepped in and set up an online fund to raise money for Jaffa, so he can live in relative warmth through the cold and wet winter months.
According to friend Stephen McCarthy, who set up the Go Fund Me webpage , Jaffa doesn’t have drug, alcohol, or mental health issues, so falls between the cracks of council support.
So far, in just three days, nearly £6,000 has been raised.
Liverpool FC's official charity, the LFC Foundation, has stepped in to donate £1,000 to the cause.
The charity wrote: "Being part of Liverpool Football Club means being part of the greatest football family in the world. We look out for each other, and particularly those who are in need. YNWA We are Liverpool. This Means More."
Fans of rivals Everton have also put allegiances to one side and reached into their pockets.
Scott Morton, who donated £20, said: "I'm an Evertonian and this didn't stop me from donating £20, I was touched by Jaffa's story.
"This is why I hate this country, how people can fall like this and allow it to happen, through no fault of his own, just pure bad look, sure you're not an Evertonian?
"Well wishing you all the best Jaffa, shame it takes kind hearted people of Liverpool to help you."
Other well-wishers recalled memories of Jaffa in decades gone by.
Jaffa was born in Nottingham, but moved to Merseyside aged 12. In the 1970s and 1980s, he started to watch Liverpool home and away, and was well-known for his colourful displays of scarves and medals.
It was not uncommon for shouts of "Jaffa Jaffa" to rain down from the travelling Reds faithful.
Writing on Facebook, Kab Hakim said: "I remember Jaffa well. Always used to stand on the crash barriers in the centre of The Kop in the 80s trying to get fans to sing.
"We were the only fans of colour who stood on The Kop regularly in those days. Sad story."
Mark, who donated £20, said: "Remember him on train to away game in 80's. Great lad, sorry to hear fallen on tough times."
Jaffa is a keen runner, and many say they've caught glimpses of him running through the streets of the city.
"I remember him running through Walton Vale in his little red silky running shorts," Mary Edmondson recalls.
"He would never look at anyone totally focused on looking ahead when he was running. Not a pick of fat on him just muscle. He was always running. So fit.
"It’s a very sad to see this about him. I wish him all the luck in the world."
You can donate to Jaffa's GoFundMe page here .
