Ipswich Town defender Leif Davis has paid tribute to three-year-old Noah Woods, who died earlier this week. Noah went missing on Tuesday afternoon and his body was found in a pond around Brantham, Suffolk, the following day.
Search and donation
Davis, 26, joined the 1,300-plus search party who looked for Noah, staying out until 3am after playing for Ipswich against Arsenal on Tuesday night. He then contributed £2,000 to a fundraiser for Noah's family.
Ipswich and their opponents, Everton, both wore black armbands as a mark of respect during their clash at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday. There was also a period of applause in the third minute of the game, which Everton won 1-0.
Player's tribute
Davis, who recently became a father himself, paid tribute to Noah in a post-match interview with BBC Radio Suffolk. "It's a sad one. I send all over all my love and thoughts to Noah's family," the 26-year-old began.
"It was tough. It hit me really hard, especially being a new father myself. Even if I wasn't a new father, I still would've been out there. I was out there until 3am after the Arsenal game."
"It's something I'd want someone else to do if it was my girl or boy. I'd love it if people came out to look for them as well. It's a sad thing. It really hit me. I hope his family and everyone who was close to him are staying strong and safe."
Fundraiser contribution
Davis said of his contribution: "It doesn't matter how much people make, whatever it is. It's just a little thing from me to show my respect to the family, who just lost their precious little boy."
"It really hit home for me. It's something I wanted to do. There's not much else to say, it's a touchy thing for me."
He added: "It's not just that. The gaffer [Gary O'Neil] also sadly lost his father the other day. It was one of them, where we wanted to try and do it [win the game] for him as well."
"That was the talk before the game, those two things, with Noah's family. We wanted to try and give everything we could for them. I think we did give everything. We went to minute 90, 97, whatever it was, but we just couldn't get that result."
Ipswich will be back in action against Fulham at Portman Road on October 10 following the international break.
