Young football fanatics at Princess Margaret Hospital were given a welcome surprise yesterday when a group of West Coast Eagles players made a special appearance to brighten their afternoon.

Mark Nicoski, Matt Rosa, Josh Kennedy, Matthew Spangher and Ashton Hams came equipped with plenty of West Coast giveaways, determined to bring a smile to the face of the club’s most courageous fans in the Orthopaedic and Plastics Ward.

Click here and scroll down to "PMH visit August 2010" to see some very cute photos.

Spending time getting up to mischief, signing autographs and chatting with the excited youngsters served as a timely reminder to the players of how the brave children at Princess Margaret are going through much tougher battles, according to PMH player ambassador Mark Nicoski.

“I think it is a bit of a wake up call for some of the guys, as much as you think you’re going through a tough time through injury or bad form, there are always going to be some kids out there who haven’t got a choice about being sick,” Nicoski said.

“The most important thing for us is making the kids smile and at the same time you sort of give the parents a bit of a smile because they are usually going through a pretty rough time too.

“I don’t think it would be particularly easy to see your child be sick and in hospital, so we are just trying to add in a bit of happiness to what is an unhappy situation.”

The sentiment was reflected by Josh Kennedy who was inspired by the cheerful nature of the kids who were experiencing such hardships at a young age.

“You get caught up in the football world and as much as footy is a big part of our life and when it’s going wrong you feel down, these kids are going through so much worse things then what we can even imagine,” Kennedy agreed.

"Getting there and seeing them have a smile on their faces, it just puts everything into perspective.”

Since 2005, the West Coast Eagles has helped to raise over $183,000 for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation with proceeds helping to fund vital medical equipment for the hospital.