Bashley Football Club is mourning the death of its youth team skipper Nick Read, who was tragically killed in a road accident.

The 17-year-old former Priestlands School pupil, from Sway, died after the car he was driving left the road near Milford-on-Sea and hit trees.

He was taken to Bournemouth General Hospital but died about an hour after the crash last Sunday.

Read, who captained Bashley under-18s to the Southampton Youth League Division 2 title last season, came from a well-liked footballing family.

His father Mick formerly managed Brockenhurst and is now right-hand man to team boss Andy Leader at another Wessex League club, BAT.

The father and son had an exceptionally close relationship, with young Nick working for his dad's Lymington-based company, Precision Concrete Flooring, and Mick regularly turning out to watch his son play.

Bashley secretary Pete Plowman - whose son, Peter, was one of two passengers who suffered minor injuries in the accident - had known Nick from his early playing days with Everton Youth's under-tens, Bashley Robins and Lymington Sprites.

He said: "Everyone at Bashley is devastated.

"Nick was a smashing lad. He was a real leader on the pitch and the rest of the lads looked up to him. He was totally dedicated to his football.

"His dad and him got on so well that you could almost be jealous.

"When you saw them at football they looked like a couple of mates instead of father and son."

The funeral will be held at Southampton Crematorium on Monday, July 7 at 1pm.