Murdered Soldier Had Spurs' Trial

It has emerged that one of the soldiers shot dead by the Real IRA had soccer trials with Tottenham Hotspur.

Just hours after Northern Ireland's most senior soldier, Brigadier George Norton, described the two soldiers killed by republican gunmen on Saturday night as "magnificent" servicemen, it has been reported that Cengiz Azimkar previously had a trial with the London club.

Sapper Cengiz Azimkar, 21, from Wood Green in London, died with fellow soldier Mark Quinsey, 23, from Birmingham, only hours before they was due to fly to Afghanistan.

Tottenham Hotspur confirmed that Sapper Azimkar had a trial with the club and paid tribute to him: "Given Patrick's affiliation with the club we will be honoured to send a tribute. Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and friends at this time."

Royal Engineer Sapper Azimkar - known as Patrick - and his friend were in desert fatigues when they were murdered as they collected a pizza delivery outside their barracks in Antrim.

Tributes to them poured in today as PM Gordon Brown visited the place where they died and met Army and police chiefs for urgent talks on the security situation.

Sapper Azimkar was said to have been looking forward to going to Afghanistan on his first operational tour.

The London Evening Standard has revealed that Cengiz's Turkish father, Mehmet, and his mother, Geraldine, who is from Lancashire but of Irish descent, were today being comforted by relatives at the family home in north London.

A friend said he was very good at football: "He could have gone into that if he wanted but instead he joined the Army straight after he left school."

The soldiers, from 38 Engineer Regiment, were the first to be murdered in the province for a decade.

Two other soldiers and two pizza deliverymen were also seriously injured in the shooting.

Security chiefs believe the gunmen were prepared to murder all six and the Real IRA last night claimed responsibility, branding the pizza deliverymen British "collaborators".

Defence Secretary John Hutton added: "Sappers Mark Quinsey and Cengiz Azimkar were promising soldiers and had already achieved a good deal in their careers to date. My thoughts and sympathies are with their families and friends."

(BMcC/JM)