Rutherglen Glencairn have paid tribute to former player Gavin Stokes after his tragic death last week at the age of 30.
The talented midfielder died in the early hours of Saturday morning when he lost control of his Mercedes GLC at Thornwood Roundabout in Glasgow’s West End. The vehicle left the road around 1.10am and the father-of-one was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
Gavin was part of Rutherglen Glencairn’s under-21 treble-winning team in 2012/13 and his success there earned him promotion to the senior side for a short spell before going on to play for Alloa.
He also played for clubs including Dundee United and Maryhill, where he made headlines in April 2017 for scoring one of the world’s fastest ever goals, netting for them in 3.2 seconds against Clydebank.
Gavin’s former coach at Glens’ U21s, Alex McArthur, has been left heartbroken by the news and said his ex-player had magic in his boots.
He told Lanarkshire Live Sport : “It’s devastating news and all the boys from the squad are absolutely shattered. He was a lovely boy, a smashing football player and a joy to coach.
“He did some magic things on a football park, he was the life and soul of the party and always there when we needed him.
“I never had any issues with him and all through our game on Saturday, my head wasn’t in the game. I was constantly thinking of Gav and his family. It is so tragic.
“Gavin was the kind of guy you would go into battle with. He was loyal, he protected his mates, he protected his team-mates and he certainly played for his manager.
“I’ll really miss the boy.”
On Gavin’s strike in 3.2 seconds, Alex added: “I was a proud boy when he scored that quick goal. And that was the imagination he had.
“Gavin Stokes could pick a pass, pick a player out through the eye of a needle and watching that goal that day, that was genius from him.”
Glencairn’s first team gaffer Willie Harvey said: “I knew Gavin well. He scored a goal or two for us when he came in from the U21s and because of that we brought him into the first team.
“He was a young man around 21/22 when he was with us and full of life. Gavin was so well thought of by everyone at the club and well thought of by the players here at the time as well.
“He was a very talented player and it’s a very sad loss.”
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