Ex-England footballer, 20, killed after he was thrown 10ft into air in 88mph smash at ‘car meet’ as boy racer is jailed

AN EX-England footballer, 20, was killed after being thrown 10ft into the air in an 88mph smash by a boy racer.

Sam Harding was struck by a vehicle while at a "car meet" in Warrington, Cheshire, on April 10, 2022.

The young man played for several non-league clubs including FC United of Manchester, Glossop North End, Ashton Athletic and Prescot Cables.

Mason Hodgson pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday.

The impact has been horrendous. Our world's ended. What's normal just changed overnight

Colin HardingSam's dad

The 23-year-old, of Glen Road, Morley, was sentenced to eight years in prison.

He was also disqualified from driving for 10 years and four months, whilst being required to pass an extended driving test before he can get behind a wheel again.

The court heard how a car meet was organised on an industrial estate in Woolston, Warrington on April 10, 2022.

The event drew together several hundred people, including Sam, who had come with two friends to look at cars.

Hodgson went to the car meet with his friends and decided to drive his black Audi 53 at around 9.30pm.

He then hurtled at speeds of more than 90mph along Kingsland Grange, a 30mph zone.

Sam was crossing the road as Hodgson ploughed into him and the 20-year-old was thrown 10ft into the air.

CCTV footage showed Sam who suffered serious head injuries, did not have time to see the black Audi due to its high speed.

Emergency services rushed to the scene, and rushed the young man to hospital, where he was sadly pronounced dead a short while later.

Tributes poured in after his death.

Ashton Athletic said in a statement: "Ashton Athletic are devastated to hear the news of the passing of 2021-22 first-team player Sam Harding."

"Sam was only at our club for one season and was a huge factor in our improved form since his arrival. He was a quiet, well-mannered young man and he will be sorely missed by everyone at the club. All our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends at this terrible time. RIP Sam."

Hodgson was arrested at the scene and an investigation was launched by the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, with support from the Major Investigation Team.

An expert confirmed Hodgson had reached speeds of up to 97mph on Kingsland Grange.

In the moments before the fatal smash he was travelling between 82 and 88mph.

After slamming on the breaks the boy racer was still barreling down the 30mph zone at up to 60mph.

Police later found videos on Hodgson's phone that revealed he often barrelled down public roads excessively over the speed limit.

He was charged with causing death by dangerous driving.

Sam's dad Colin Harding has spoken out since the tragedy.

He told Cheshire Police: "He was a superstar. From the moment he could walk all he wanted to do was play football.

"And I never sat down for 16 years, all I did was play football with him.

"He just loved life completely, he was into everything you could think of, climbing, running, mountain biking, football. He just loved life and unfortunately it got took away from him."

The heartbroken father recalled the moment he was informed of Sam's accident.

"I was watching the golf, it was the US open, and I'd gone into the kitchen for a brew and then I turned around and saw a flash light," he said.

"And I thought it was the milkman, anyway I heard a knock on the door and I saw it was a policeman and I knew straight away.

"He said 'we need to get you to Warrington as soon as possible'.

"As soon as he said that Liz came down the stairs and she was hysterical."

Colin continued: "The impact has been horrendous. Our world's ended. What's normal just changed overnight.

"What's frustrating for me is that if Sam had walked out a second later, Mason would have been 50 yards down the road because he was going that fast.

"He was a ticking time bomb and unfortunately time ran out. And it happened to be my lad that got hit."

'HORRIFIC SPEEDS'

Following Mason's sentencing Sergeant Simon Degg, of the Serious Collision Investigation Unit at Cheshire Police, added: “Samuel was a bright and talented young man who had his whole life ahead of him. He travelled to Warrington that night simply to look at other cars with his friends and have fun.

“Hodgson travelled to Warrington that night to show off and drive his car as quickly as possible. He showed little skill in driving fast down a straight road. In fact, he demonstrated the opposite.

“The footage we recovered from his phone showed that he had no regard for the law and regularly took part in street races, even filming himself as he drove at speeds in excess of 160mph on UK roads.

“In the moments prior to the collision, he reached horrific speeds of more than 90mph, in an area governed by a 30mph speed limit, and even after he had spotted Samuel in the road, he had no way of stopping due to the excessive speed at which he was travelling.

“As a result of his selfish, unnecessary, and dangerous actions, Samuel never got to return home that night and the lives of his family have been torn apart.

“While we will never be able to bring Samuel back, I hope that the sentence handed to Hodgson will provide his family some closure and allow them to start to rebuild their lives.

“I also hope that the devastating consequences of this case will act as a warning to others who are contemplating on taking part in these events.”

'ONE OF THE BEST'

In tribute to Sam, Tom Conroy, FC United of Manchester academy manager, said: "(He was) one of the best academy players we have ever had and that was proven when he was successful in England schoolboy trials, earning caps for his country".

"Sam is always spoken about to future academy players as a perfect example of the type of player we want at the club, not only with regards to… footballing ability, but the type of person he was - kind, polite, hard working and professional.

"He will be sadly missed and I would like to pass my love and condolences to Sam's family."

Glossop North End also wrote: "GNE is shocked & deeply saddened to hear of the tragic passing of former player, Sam Harding, who sadly passed away last night aged just 20. Sam came through Glossop Juniors and we all join together in sending our deepest & sincere condolences to Sam's family at this difficult time."

And Prescot Cables tweeted: "The club are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Sam Harding, who was killed in a car accident last night.

"Sam made a number of appearances for Prescot Cables during the 2019-20 season. Our thoughts are with his friends, former teammates and family at this time. RIP Sam."