Funeral takes place of England captain Harry Kane’s Irish great-uncle

The funeral has taken place in Co Galway of England captain Harry Kane's great-uncle Paudge Kane.

Mr Kane (88) died in University College Hospital Galway (UCHG) last Monday two days before his great-nephew scored the winning goal against Denmark, which sent England into the first final of a major tournament since 1966.

Paudge Kane was a brother of Harry Kane's grandfather Michael John Kane who emigrated to London in the 1950s and was buried back in Galway in May 2013.

There were 12 siblings in the family and Paudge Kane took over the farm at Dawrosmore in Letterfrack.

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The funeral Mass took place in St Joseph’s Church, Letterfrack on Friday morning.

Local publican Gerry Lyons, who runs Molly's pub in the village, said Mr Kane was brought up and reared in the parish.

He described him as “real gentleman. You couldn’t make nicer. He was always happy, laughing and smiling and loved his traditional music. The Kanes are a big music family.”

Harry is related to the well-known musicians The Kane Sisters.

Mr Lyons said the footballer's father Patrick still visited Letterfrack two or three times a year to see his uncle Paudge. "He never missed a birthday for him. He would take him and look after him," he said.

Harry also visited his great-uncle frequently before football commitments kept him away.

The village is firmly behind the footballer as he bids to become the first England captain to lift a major trophy since Bobby Moore lifted the World Cup for England in 1966.

England face Italy in the final at Wembley Stadium on Sunday. After a slow start in which he did not score in the first two games, Kane now has four goals making him the joint second-highest scorer in the tournament.

During the World Cup in 2018, Mr Lyons gave away free pints to customers every time Kane scored a goal. He finished as the tournament's top scorer with six goals and Mr Lyons included a seventh when he scored a penalty against Colombia.

This time around things are rather subdued because of Covid-19. There is a television in the beer garden, but numbers are limited.