Winning the Adver's mascot competition would help Riley Harper remember 2019 for something good in what has been a difficult year, according to his mum.

The six-year-old lost his grandad, nan and dog in the space of four days in October.

Now, Riley’s mum Natalie is hoping that being a Swindon Town mascot on Boxing Day will brighten up his year.

She said: “When he was about one and a half he lost his dad who was a big Swindon Town fan.

“I’ve been taking him to the games since.

"I’m a big town fan myself so he didn’t really have a choice!

“But this October was a tough month for all of us.

“He lost his grandad and his nan and his dog all in the space of four days. He has a lot of people who are up in the sky.

“It wol be amazing for him.

"But for us it would be outside the box. He can remember the year for something good not just for all the bad things that have gone on.”

Despite what Riley has gone through, Natalie says that he constantly sees the positives.

“But he’s been amazing for me and his nanny,” she added: “It’s nice to give something back to him.

“He doesn’t realise it but he’s our rock.

“Every negative thing he’s had he just turns into a positive.”

Riley’s nan Tanya added: “He said it’s okay for grandad to go to the sky because he pinches my sweets.

“But when the dog died he said no, that’s not good because Metz never did anything wrong. He tries to justify it.”

Tanya pointed out that during the last few months with his grandad, Riley would often read to him and help interpret what he was saying.

She said: “His grandad was in hospital for 11 weeks and then he came home for a couple of weeks.

“Riley used to tell us what his grandad was saying. He would say ‘nanny, he doesn’t want to talk to us anymore’. He could tell which noises meant yes and no.”

Riley, who has been going to Swindon games since he was two, said his favourite player is Doyle and thinks that Town might win the league this year.