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Hundreds of mourners burst into applause as the father and brother of murdered schoolboy Rhys Jones helped to carry his coffin into Liverpool's Anglican cathedral for his funeral service yesterday.
In a tribute to the 11-year-old and his favourite football team, Stephen Jones and Owen, 17, wore royal blue Everton shirts and the coffin bore the club's crest and blue and white flowers.
At his parents' request, many of the mourners wore bright clothes or football tops, both Liverpool and Everton, to celebrate their son's life. The Bishop of Liverpool, the Right Reverend James Jones, described Rhys' family as a "beacon of light" amid the sadness of the past two weeks.
"Your love for Rhys, your dignity and your family life have shone out and restored hope and honour to our community, shamed by such a crime," he said.
Hundreds gathered outside the cathedral to pay their respects as the cortege passed.
They cheered members of the Everton squad when the players entered the cathedral.
The service began with the organist playing the theme from the 1960s police drama Z-Cars, the music played when the Everton team runs on to the pitch before each home game.
The schoolboy's friends, wearing their football kits, lit candles at the front of the cathedral and placed flowers on his coffin.
Rhys died after being shot in a pub car park in the Croxteth area of Liverpool on his way home from playing football last month. Seventeen people have been arrested, but no charges have been brought.
- Reuters
