Philadelphia fan who proposed to cheerleader girlfriend during 76ers game silences haters

A Philadelphia basketball fan who proposed to his cheerleader girlfriend at the 76ers game and received a brutal pile-on for his looks has hit back at social media trolls in style.

Chris Girard went viral on social media this week for using the 76ers’ NBA game against the Clippers to propose to his girlfriend – Sixers dancer Jackie Murtha – but the response may have been slightly different to what he expected.

While some were delighted for him, thousands of Twitter users cruelly piled in to tell him he was punching above his weight – but Girard has since silenced them in one fell swoop with a hilarious riposte.

Taking to social media to post two photos of himself and Jackie during the proposal, he wrote: ‘Pete Davidson walked so I could run’ – in reference to the controversial comedian who is notorious for dating beautiful women.

Chris Girard had a hilarious response for social media trolls after his amazing proposal video

Social media was very active in the wake of the proposal, with Girard taking the brunt of it

Girard proposed to long-time girlfriend and Sixers dancer Jackie Murtha at the Clippers game

Shortly after the proposal, on December 23, Girard initially told his followers, in capital letters: ‘DEAR COMMENT SECTION: I KNOW SHE’S OUT OF MY LEAGUE. I AM JUST HAPPY TO BE HERE.’

The romantic proposal video initially went viral over the last two days, after Girard dressed up as the Sixers mascot, only to jump out of the suit to surprise his girlfriend.

In the clip, he then gets down on one knee, with Jackie putting her hands to her face in shock before accepting his offer.

The pair have both since posted various photos of the romantic moment inside a packed Wells Fargo Center, and she too broke her silence on Instagram.

Immediately after the proposal, he acknowledged the responses from users on social media

The pair appeared delighted after the romantic moment at the game on Friday night

On social media, fans claimed that she is out of her partner’s league – with some brutal tweets

Trying to quell the onslaught against her boyfriend-turned-fiance, she wrote: ‘To everyone in the comment sections… yes it’s real,’ followed by an engagement ring emoji.

In the wake of the video hitting social media, some of the comments were brutal in their honesty, with one user writing: ‘He must be rich rich,’ while another added ‘Six months tops’ – a prediction of the length of their impending marriage.

Another Twitter user wrote ‘They doing Make a Wish for adults now,’ while one asked: ‘Is this a kidnapping situation?’

According to the pair’s Instagram accounts, it appears the loved-up pair have been together since at least 2015, travelling around the world together during their relationship, which began at school.

The pair appear to have been together since at least 2015 and are childhood sweethearts

The pair have been to weddings together – but the next could be their own after she said yes