Soccer: Sheffield Wednesday youngster dies

Sheffield Wednesday’s promising young defender Tom Staniforth has died after collapsing on a night out in York city centre with friends.

The 20-year-old was about to go into a nightclub when he collapsed holding his head.

He was rushed to York District Hospital but is understood to have died during the journey. The cause is not yet known and a post mortem was being conducted today.

Staniforth, who collapsed and died on Sunday evening, signed as a trainee at Hillsborough on July 1, 1997, and turned professional on October 19, 1998.

He was regarded highly at Hillsborough and was on the fringes of securing a regular place in the first team squad.

The Nationwide First Division club have already confirmed that there will be a minute’s silence before Saturday’s home game against West Bromwich Albion.

The club’s press officer Steve Chu said: "Everybody is stunned by what has happened.

"He had been at the club since the age of 11 so he was like a part of the family. It is just a really big shock."

Staniforth’s father Gordon, a former York City player, said: "Everybody loved him. He didn’t have an enemy in the world. He was a loveable softie. He loved kids, it’s tragic.

"He was on the subs bench for six matches in the Premiership against sides including Arsenal and Manchester United and I was thrilled to bits."

Staniforth, a former Tadcaster Grammar School pupil, had originally been at York City’s Centre of Excellence.