‘Godly men and best friends’ laid to rest

A woman who tried in vain to rescue her father and two brothers when they were overcome by killer fumes paid an emotional tribute to them at their funeral.

Emma Spence twice climbed into a manhole and then into a slurry tank on the family farm near Hillsborough, Co Down, where her father Noel, 58, and brothers Graham, 30, and Ulster Rugby player Nevin, 22, all died at the weekend.

Graham had lowered a ladder into the manhole to retrieve a pet dog whichdisappeared into the tank, according to Edwin Poots, a friend and near neighbour.