Two teenagers who drowned when their canoe capsized in a lake in Northern Ireland will be given a guard of honour at their funeral by their local sports team.
Rory McAlinden (18) died while trying to rescue his cousin, Claire Steele (16) after their canoe overturned on Castlewellan Lake early on Saturday morning.
They were members of St Malachy's Gaelic Athletic Club and team-mates will turn out for a funeral Mass in the village tomorrow.
Spokesman Harry Toner said: "They were very enthusiastic young players, always getting into mischief. "Both families are long-time members of our club. They were both very promising players." The bodies of the best friends were recovered from the water on Saturday morning after a 10-hour search by divers.
The alarm was raised by Patrick Morgan (18) who was with them when they went missing. Prayers were said for them at churches in Castlewellan yesterday after villagers had lined the shore to watch the search. A joint funeral will be held at St Malachy's Church.
"There will be a guard of honour from the club and the families have been invited back to the clubhouse for drinks afterwards," said Mr Toner, who works as a barman there. Rory was an apprentice joiner with a local building firm. Claire was in the fifth year at St Malachy's High School in Castlewellan.
Divers found the pair 30 feet from land, lying next to each other below the surface. They were taken from the scene by ambulance for post-mortem examination.
The local community has been stunned and an Easter Sunday parade in Castlewellan yesterday was cancelled as a mark of respect.