A VETERAN player of the traditional Uppies and Downies game has spoken of the sadness he felt when details emerged of a high profile court case.

Shane Fletcher, 21, of Workington, was convicted of plotting to kill people at the mass football games which are held every year around Easter following a trial at Manchester Crown Court last week.

And now Joe Clark, a veteran player for the Uppies, said he was sad to hear Fletcher being described as a loner.

Joe said: "All the reports in the press say he was a loner, but if he actually played Uppies and Downies he would have hundreds of friends. We are like a big extended family and I find the situation rather sad."

He added that after Christmas, every time he sees a fellow player from either team, they exchange comments of anticipation for the upcoming series of the game.

"Once Christmas is out of the way we all start looking forward to it and the lads will stop me and say: 'Not long now Clarkie'. We have a lot of affection for each other.

"The first thing I thought when I read about the court case was: 'Poor lad'. It's such a shame for a young man to feel so isolated," said Joe.

Thousands gather for the Uppies and Downies games each year and Joe said although it is always good to be vigilant, he did not want people to worry about attending.

He said: "It's just one of those things, you can't go through life living in fear of something happening."