Gary Speed 'was not depressed... he was happily married'
Gary Speed was not depressed
and had not argued with his wife before being found hanged at his
home, according to a close friend.
The Wales manager’s agent and
best man Hayden Evans said Speed was ‘happily married’ and that his
widow Louise is bewildered by his suspected
suicide.
Mr Evans said: ‘They were
happily married and anyone who knows them will tell you that. This
is why it is a mystery.
‘We genuinely at the moment
have no clue whatsoever what has caused it and I have been with the
family all day.
‘Everybody is asking the same
question and no one has an answer. We are all in shock.’
The final picture: Gary Speed poses with a fan outisde
the BBC studios in Salford. Hours later he was found dead
When asked if 42-year-old
Speed had suffered bouts of depression, Mr Evans told The Sun ‘none
whatsoever’.
He added: ‘The one thing the
family and me as one of his closest friends would totally refute is
that. There was no indication of any problems and never has
been’.
Speed appeared happy as he
left BBC studios in Salford on Saturday afternoon after filming
Football Focus. His wife found him hanged in the garage of their
£1.5million mansion near Chester just after 7am on
Sunday.
Yesterday, as tributes
continued to pour in from across the sporting world to the popular
Welshman, police were preparing for the delicate task of speaking
to his 40-year-old wife and their two teenage sons.
Gary Speed, with his wife Louise, earlier this year at
Shay Given's Fashion Kicks event held at Lancashire County Cricket
Club
As they struggled to come to
terms with his shock death, Mr Evans spoke of how they had been
‘overwhelmed’ by the outpouring of sympathy over the past 24
hours.
‘Gary’s family would sincerely
like to thank all the people who have sent messages of condolence
and tributes in what is a very difficult time,’ said Mr
Evans.
Speaking outside the family’s
home, he added: ‘They have been overwhelmed by the support – it
really has helped. You can imagine how Louise is
feeling.’
A pile of tributes including
flowers, footballs and soccer shirts was growing at the gates at
the end of the star’s drive last night as a steady stream of fans
came to pay their respects.
Yesterday officials at the
Welsh Football Association promised to support the family and offer
them a ‘shoulder to cry on’ in the coming weeks.
‘I’ve no understanding of why
it happened, I don’t know the answer and I don’t think we ever
will,’ said chief executive Jonathan Ford.
‘At the moment our thoughts
aren’t with that – they are with Gary’s family.
‘He was a family man, he loved
his wife and children.
‘We will do whatever we can to
help Louise and the boys.’
Both Speed’s sons are
promising sportsmen, 14-year-old Ed a talented footballer and
his 13-year-old brother Tommy a keen boxer.
Also yesterday shocked fans of
the clubs Speed represented over his long career – including Leeds
United, Everton, Newcastle and Bolton Wanderers – left photographs,
shirts and bouquets of flowers outside their grounds.
Cheshire Police confirmed that
Speed’s death was being treated as ‘non-suspicious’.
An inquest will be opened and
adjourned today in Warrington.
Shocked friends have told how
he seemed happy and planning for the future when he appeared as a
guest on Football Focus which was filmed in Salford on Saturday -
an account borne out by the photograph of him beaming alongside a
delighted fan.
It was taken as he walked out
of the studios with former teammate Gary McAllister at
2.30pm.
And yet just after 7am on
Sunday, his wife is understood to have made the horrifying
discovery of his body hanging in the garage of their
home.
Speed's widow, Louise, 40, was
a constant figure of support throughout his career.
Speed’s parents Roger and
Carol were being comforted by family and friends at their neat
semi-detached home in nearby Queensferry.
A friend said: ‘The family are
far too upset to say anything at this terrible time.’
Shocked fans of the clubs
Speed represented over his long career – including Leeds United,
Everton, Newcastle and Bolton Wanderers – left photographs, shirts
and bouquets of flowers outside their grounds.
At the Welsh Assembly building
in Cardiff, flags were flying at half-mast.
Paying their respects: Fans at Leeds United's ground
Elland Road show their grief at former player Gary Speed's
death
Tributes: Hundreds of tributes including photographs,
shirts and bouquets of flowers have been left at the Elland Road
ground
Rest in Peace: Mourners leave flowers at Gary Speed's house in
Cheshire, left. Right: A decorated T-shirt is left on the
ground as tributes are placed at the Billy Bremner statue outside
Elland Road
Prime Minister David Cameron
described Gary Speed's death as 'incredibly moving'.
'I was watching Match Of The
Day last night and watching people, crowds, absolutely silent and
footballers revering his memory,' he said.
'I think it has been extremely
moving. Obviously here in the north, where he played for so many of
the iconic teams, I know he meant an enormous amount to people and
people feel very, very sad on his behalf and on his family's
behalf.'
During Football Focus on BBC1,
Speed talked enthusiastically about his team’s improving fortunes
and his hopes for success in World Cup qualifying matches next
year.
Presenter Dan Walker, who
spent four hours on and off camera with him, said: ‘He was as
bubbly as I’ve known him. He was talking about his kids, how they
were really coming on, and talking about playing golf next
week.
‘Even small things like how
he’d just got into Twitter. It’s awful to think someone who was so
gifted and so well liked with the rest of his life to look forward
to has been cruelly removed. He was in such a good mood about the
show and said he’d love to come back before Christmas.’
A book of remembrance was
opened at the FAW headquarters in Cardiff and hundreds queued up to
sign it.
Speed's assistant manager
Raymond Verheijen said his boss was 'adored' by Wales stars such as
Gareth Bale, Craig Bellamy and Aaron Ramsey.
He said: 'I remember him as a
beautiful person, a very stable person full of energy.
'Every time he stepped into a
room he energised the place. You could see the players adored him.
They really looked up to him.
'He was the perfect example of
practise what you preach and the players really followed
him.
'When we sat down with one
player for individual talks you could how open the players were to
listen to his advice.'
Paying his respects: Former Everton player Graeme Sharp
looks at tributes left outside the gates to Goodison Park
Never forget: A Newcastle scarf is tied to the entrance to his
Cheshire home
Respects: A book of condolences in memory of Gary Speed
is opened at the Football of Wales offices in Cardiff
Speed went
to the same school as former England star Michael Owen, Hawarden
High School, where he met his future wife.
Yesterday
staff paid tribute, saying he had regularly taken the time to
return and help inspire pupils.
‘He
remained in contact with the school and was generous in giving of
his time to attend a number of presentations,’ said head teacher
Roger Davies.
‘As
manager of our national team, Gary presented himself as a superb
role model for the young people in our community.
‘We extend
our deepest condolences to his family at this sad
time.’
Cheshire
Police confirmed that Speed’s death was being treated as
‘non-suspicious’. An inquest will be opened and adjourned today in
Warrington.
‘As part
of the coroner's report they will speak to family members,’ a
spokesman said. ‘It is normal procedure.'
Robbie
Savage, who played alongside Speed for Wales, said his former
teammate had been ribbing him on Saturday about his appearance on
Strictly Come Dancing.
‘I just
can’t believe it,’ said Savage. ‘He was my mate and he’s gone. I’ve
got very close to Gary in the last few years – the guy is a
trooper, he’s left two gorgeous kids behind and a beautiful wife.
He had everything
Players and fans held a minute's silence in memory of the Wales
manager before the match between Swansea City and Aston Villa
Respect: The Kop falls silent as Manchester City and
Liverpool players pay their respects to Gary Speed before their
Premier League match
I spoke to
him yesterday and we were laughing and joking – he was saying make
sure you don’t get a (mark of) two off Craig (Revel Horwood, the
Strictly judge) tonight. That’s what Gary’s like – he always thinks
about other people.
‘As my
captain when I was a young boy in the squad, he’d come to me and I
could go to him with my problems.’
Speed’s former
Newcastle United teammate Shay Given, who attended a charity
fundraising fashion event with him in May, was seen in floods of
tears on television as a minute’s silence was held at Swansea
City’s match against Given’s team Aston Villa.
Thousands
of fans sang Welsh hymns and joined in the chant ‘there’s only one
Gary Speed’.
At
Anfield, Liverpool’s Welsh star Craig Bellamy asked not to play
against Manchester City after hearing the news.
Speed, who was awarded an MBE in the 2010
Birthday Honours, retired from playing only last year after winning
85 caps for his country.
He
represented Leeds United, Everton, Newcastle and Bolton Wanderers
during his long career.
Both Speed’s parents were from Chester but
he was born in the Welsh border town of Mancot and was always proud
to represent his country. His father Roger played football for
Wrexham before returning to his trade as a
joiner.
Speed made
his league debut for Leeds United in May 1989 and was a member of
the team which went on to win the league title in
1992.
He was a familiar face in his home village
and at the Grosvenor Arms pub in nearby Aldford.
Neighbour Stephen Smith, 36, said: ‘It is
such a shock. I’m an Everton season ticket holder and shouted his
name from the terraces at Goodison Park.’
Helen Hewitt, who has a cottage near Speed’s
mansion, said: ‘I cannot believe it. He was such a
lovely man.
‘Parcels would be delivered for him
here and he would come and collect them.
‘He would always wave from his big, black
Jaguar car.’
Despite having limited experience as a
manager, Gary Speed’s impact on the Welsh national team had been
dramatic
