Duke of Cambridge pays tribute to Aston Villa manager Dean Smith’s father who succumbed to Covid-19
Nothing was going to stop the Duke of Cambridge meeting players from his beloved Aston Villa today, but it appears the feeling was mutual.
Defender Kortney Hause told Prince William, 38, that he was pulled over by police as he made his way to the engagement at the club’s new training centre at Bodymoor Heath in north Warwickshire.
Luckily, he had an unusual excuse.
The defender said he had told the officer: “You’ve got to let me go, I’m meeting the Duke of Cambridge.”
Clearly tickled, the Duke replied: “I love it. I won’t ask you how fast you were going.”
The Duke joked that he was “the country’s best armchair manager” as he heard about the work of the club's foundation protecting and supporting communities during the Covid-19 pandemic.
He paid tribute to the father of Aston Villa manager Dean Smith who died after contracting Covid-19 as he opened the club’s new training centre.
The Duke said Ron Smith, a lifelong Villa fan who died aged 79 last year, would have been “very proud” of the achievements of his son, who has steered the team to promotion and Premier League safety since being appointed in 2018.
The future king is a keen Villa fan and wore the club's colours - a claret jumper and blue shirt – for his visit and was told by the club’s manager “you’ve got the right colours on today.”
He replied: “Absolutely”.
Asked if he had watched Villa’s match against Everton on Saturday, which the Midlands team won 2-1, he said he had, describing it as a “good game”.
He said in his speech: “As you know, Aston Villa is very close to my heart and I'm very delighted to be here today. I'd like to pay particular tribute to one man, for whom Aston Villa has always been in his blood.
"Last year, head coach Dean Smith tragically lost his father - a lifelong Villa fan, a matchday steward, to Covid-19.
"His loss is just one of the many ways the pandemic has impacted the club over the last 12 months.
“I want to offer my sincere condolences to Dean and pay tribute to his extraordinary contribution to the club since joining in 2018. I know your dad would be very proud.
"I'm immensely proud to be associated with a club that does so much through the Aston Villa foundation in support of the community, especially through the pandemic as we've heard today.
"I can’t think of a cooler place than Villa Park to be vaccinated - unless you're a Birmingham City fan.”
The Duke later revealed that his daughter, Princess Charlotte, had a “lovely” sixth birthday party in Norfolk, where they were joined by another family.
During a visit to Babcock Vehicle Engineering in Walsall, he was asked if she had enjoyed her day on Sunday.
“She had a lovely day thank you,” he said. “Last year it was her birthday in lockdown but this year we were able to have one other family over.
“They grow up very fast. It was great fun.”
