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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Funeral for Afghan blast 'legend' | Funeral for Afghan blast 'legend' |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Hundreds of people have lined the streets of Sheffield for the funeral of a soldier killed in Afghanistan. | Hundreds of people have lined the streets of Sheffield for the funeral of a soldier killed in Afghanistan. |
| Cpl Liam Riley of 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, was killed in an explosion near Malgir on 1 February. | Cpl Liam Riley of 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, was killed in an explosion near Malgir on 1 February. |
| The 21-year-old from Killamarsh, Derbyshire, had been trying to recover the body of fellow soldier L/Cpl Graham Shaw, who died in a separate explosion. | The 21-year-old from Killamarsh, Derbyshire, had been trying to recover the body of fellow soldier L/Cpl Graham Shaw, who died in a separate explosion. |
| Prince Harry, who served with Cpl Riley in 2007, described him as a "legend" and said he was a "really special man". | Prince Harry, who served with Cpl Riley in 2007, described him as a "legend" and said he was a "really special man". |
| Police closed off roads in the city centre and hundreds of people lined the streets and entrance to Sheffield Cathedral, where Cpl Riley's funeral took place. | Police closed off roads in the city centre and hundreds of people lined the streets and entrance to Sheffield Cathedral, where Cpl Riley's funeral took place. |
| Our Liam shone so bright for such a short space of time, sometimes I think that maybe he was never meant to fade Jonathan RileyCpl Riley's brother | |
| Three coachloads of the soldier's friends and colleagues travelled to the funeral from Warminster in Wiltshire, where Cpl Riley was based. | Three coachloads of the soldier's friends and colleagues travelled to the funeral from Warminster in Wiltshire, where Cpl Riley was based. |
| Alongside the soldier's coffin, which was draped in a Union flag, was a flower arrangement which spelled out the word "son". | |
| Cpl Riley's older brother Jonathan paid tribute to him during the service. | |
| He said he hoped nobody minded him wearing the regimental tie as he believed his brother "was a proud soldier, and a proud Yorkshireman would have wanted me to wear it". | |
| Cheeky smile | |
| Mr Riley said Cpl Riley had a "cheeky grin" and an "endearing personality" and it had been "a privilege and an honour to watch him grow into the man he became". | |
| He added: "Our Liam shone so bright for such a short space of time, sometimes I think that maybe he was never meant to fade. | |
| "His memory will burn so brightly. It will shine in our minds, just like a shooting star in the dark night sky, just as his personality did on Earth." | |
| A private family committal was held after the service | |
| As Mr Riley stood down, the congregation inside the cathedral and those gathered on the streets broke into applause. | |
| The Reverend Helen Guest, of St Giles Parish Church in Killamarsh, read a poem written by Cpl Riley's mother, Cheryl Routledge. | |
| The long poem included verses that said of her son: "I want the world to know how his cheeky smile consumed my heart. | |
| "I want the world to know of my unconditional love, right from the start. | |
| "I want the world to know Liam and the Army fitted in hand in glove. | |
| "I want the world to know his family and his regimental pals were his love." | |
| Following the service, a private family committal was held at Killamarsh Cemetery. |