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There were samba drums and Mexican waves and the screaming was deafening - and this was just David Beckham's warm-up for tonight's big game against the Wellington Phoenix.
Yesterday the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer team - and their biggest star - held what may well be an attendance
record-setting training session.
Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert - who had Galaxy coach Ruud Gullit's permission to "spy" on training - kept shaking his head, saying, "It's just incredible".
Herbert thought the crowd easily topped the 14,441 team record crowd the Phoenix drew for their first A-League game, just four months ago.
The noise topped anything Yellow Fever - the Phoenix's colourful supporters club - have generated this season, despite their being arguably the Hyundai A-League's most vocal fans.
Stadium management put the crowd at more than 15,000 and the children of Wellington - bussed in from far and wide - made a determined effort to sound like 50,000. From their first glimpse of Beckham to his farewell lap of honour, the students - and more than a few of their teachers and parents - kept up the noise.
Some were hopeful, such as the kids with the sign "Beckham - Come to Birchville". Others were forlorn, such as the child who threw a paper dart asking for an autograph in Beckham's direction - it floated to earth amid a pack of photographers.
As for the girl holding the sign saying "David, I'm 16, honest", it's probably just as well stadium security kept the fans well away from their hero.
There were some spots where Beckham-mania didn't take grip. Amid the Ngaio Primary section of the stadium some unsporting types had brought their exercise books and were doing homework. One student who brought his work up to the teacher for her to check was given short shrift: "No way, I'm watching Beckham."
Gullit - a former World Player of the Year - is a man well accustomed to screaming fans, but even he was impressed with Wellington's brand of Beckham-mania. "It's crazy and you never expect it; the number of people who come out now is just amazing. The guys love it, it's cool," the former AC Milan star and Chelsea and Newcastle manager said.
Quavas Kirk, a 19-year-old midfielder, has seen the LA Galaxy transformed by Beckham-mania. "Without him there weren't many people coming out. Now there's a fanfare everywhere and it's really amazing, just the adulation he receives."
Team-mate Cobi Jones - the brightest star in LA Galaxy before Beckham's arrival - said he had no qualms about the limelight shifting off him and on to the Briton.
"Life has changed quite a bit since David arrived. There's a lot more interest in football and in the Galaxy than at any other time and that's great. It's good for the sport, not just in Los Angeles but right across America to have someone of this calibre here."
Beckham seemed to enjoy the session immensely. He pointed a few of the more colourful blocks of fans out to his team-mates, smiled through some passing drills and small-sided games, and milked the crowd's reaction when the first free kick he attempted cannoned off the upright.
After the session Phoenix owner Terry Serepisos - a man who looks to have got an emotional return far more rewarding than any money he may make from Beckham's visit - introduced number 23 to the crowd.
After the shrieking died down, Beckham summed it up: "Thank you to all the children and all the schools, because this is incredible."
Today
* Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy play the Wellington Phoenix at Westpac Stadium at 7pm
* Live coverage on TV One.