Liam Hampson funeral: Rugby league player farewelled after tragic death
Rugby league player Liam Hampson has been farewelled following his tragic death while on holidays with NRL stars last month.
NRL
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Wayne Bennett has paid tribute to Liam Hampson as the Queensland rugby league fraternity on Monday honoured an aspiring NRL star who “lived the best life he could”.
The 24-year-old Hampson was celebrated in a public service at Moreton Daily Stadium at Redcliffe, three weeks after his tragic death inside a Spanish nightclub.
It was the very field of dreams Hampson graced just six weeks ago, when the Dolphins hooker played a key role in Redcliffe’s Queensland Cup grand final against Norths Devils.
An estimated 1000 guests returned to Hampson’s favourite football ground to say farewell to a young man who had touched the hearts of many, including Bennett, who regarded him as a future NRL player at the Dolphins.
Bennett sat in the back row at Moreton Daily Stadium to pay his respects to Hampson, joining a number of NRL identities, including Queensland Origin winger Xavier Coates.
As the song ‘Follow the Sun’ played over the speakers, his coffin emerged from the Moreton Daily Stadium tunnel, just hours after the Dolphins’ NRL team he hoped to represent kicked off their historic debut pre-season.
Pallbearers included Titans star AJ Brimson and Broncos back-rower Jordan Riki, two of his best mates who were holidaying in Europe with Hampson when he accidentally plunged to his death in a tragic nightclub fall.
Brimson and Riki kissed his coffin, wiping away tears, as Hampson’s father Brett remembered a son who was fiercely competitive, constantly fun and smart enough to rank in the top one per cent of a general-knowledge test.
“Gone too soon, but what an amazing 24 years it was,” Hampson senior said, flanked by Hampson’s mum Lorna and sister Tiarna.
“Liam was full of cheekiness and fun and living the best life he could.
“His birth was one of the best moments of my life.
“Liam always had a footy in his hands growing up. All he wanted to do was run with the ball and tackle kids.
“There is a hole we will never fill. I will miss my best mate. Rest in peace buddy.”
Bennett said Hampson, who attended Gold Coast’s Keebra Park High, made an instant impression with him.
“I only met him once, after the preliminary final this year (when Hampson was named man-of-the-match against Burleigh) and I was taken aback by what a fine young man he was,” Bennett said.
“I didn’t see him again.
“He had hopes of playing NRL, he won the player of the match in the prelim finals and I met him after the game.
“He was a very talented young man.”
Hampson’s Dolphins coach Scott Murray recalled the Souths Acacia junior’s spirit and willingness to help others.
“I put him on at Redcliffe State High as a teacher’s aid and what he did there was amazing,” Murray said.
“He was amazing in the way he was able to connect with the young kids, he helped them on and off the field. He was in the classroom helping kids out who were struggling academically.
“It’s been tough the last few weeks. You wake up sometimes and think did it really happen?
“I don’t know if it has sunk in yet for us all. He was a wonderful young man.
“He was just fun to be around.
“I don’t know how many times I walked into the training rooms ... you may have had a tough day but if Liam was in the room, everything was OK.”
Dolphins captain Cameron Cullen broke down as he reflected on Hampson’s passing.
“I just felt shock at first. I don’t think it has fully set. It’s hard to take,” said Cullen, wiping away tears.
“He will certainly leave a big hole, I know he was loved across our playing group and whole club.
“He touched the community.
“It’s a credit to him to move to a new town and have the impact he has had at Redcliffe. The Dolphins is a club with a rich history and his legacy will last here forever.”
Hampson’s mother Lorna spoke with pride of a league-loving boy who chased his dreams with a smile.
“His hero was Johnathan Thurston (Cowboys and Queensland Origin legend).
“Like Liam, he was told he was too small and would never make it in the NRL.
“Liam succeeded through his normal determination and hard work.
“As a mum, I had the best son in the world.
“He made me a better person.”
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