The festive season was irrevocably shattered for the Island's footballing fraternity yesterday morning ? particularly those at Dandy Town ? with the death of top defender Randy Swan.

As news spread that the 24-year-old, who suffered massive head injuries in a two-car collision in Southampton last Thursday morning, had been removed from life support at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, a pall fell over Town's base, Western Stars Sports Club. Understandably, the mood among Hornets members was as bleak as the day's grey and ominous skies as they grappled with their loss.

Tributes quickly poured in for the talented full-back who represented North Village in his youth before transferring to St. John's Road where he was a regular starter and defensive linchpin in recent seasons.

"It's like a family member has died," said Stars president Calvin Blankendal, searching for words and offering the club's sympathies to Swan's relatives.

"Western Stars has lost a friend; a mentor; an honest, hard-working individual who was also an outstanding football player. He was always helping the club any way he could both on and off the field."

The club chief and striker Khano Smith both noted their late counterpart would be missed not just by the senior ranks but by juniors too since Swan coached Town's under-nine outfit.

"Those children are definitely going to miss him. He really looked out for them and he liked working with them. They are going to miss him just as much as we will," noted Smith.

Stating he was "very sad", the 23-year-old declared Swan's stature and on-field reputation would make him hard to replace in Town's back line.

Hornets coach Devarr Boyles seconded that view, sparing no praise for one of his brightest lights.

"In my opinion, pound for pound, Randy was one of the better defenders in Bermuda; definitely the best defender at my club in one-on-one duels," said the architect of Town's league and knockout double in 2003-04.

"Randy was the type of player who would take personal satisfaction in marking the opposition's best forward. He enjoyed that and relished those battles.

"From a footballer's perspective, Randy had just about figured out the game defensively as far as his qualities were concerned. The part he had to grow in was his emotional side with his frequent yellow cards and, at one point, the number of red cards.

"In one particular game at Somerset he got two yellow cards within 20 seconds so it just shows how emotional he was on the field. But sometimes those players are the special ones because of their tenacity in all situations.

"Randy was one of the team's unofficial leaders. He would be telling the team they were capable of doing things the team didn't think they could do. He was one of those people who would say 'We're going to win this, that and the other' and everybody else would be saying 'We haven't even won two games yet' but that was just his belief ? 'If it can be done, then I can do it'.

"He was an all-or-nothing person. He either liked you or he didn't. If he liked you, he would let you know and if he didn't, he would let you know. There was nothing false about him. He would let you know what he was feeling all the time ? uncensored, unrehearsed. He would let it all hang out. That's the way he lived."

Smith concurred with that aspect of Swan's behaviour, crediting the latter for keeping his (Smith's) feet firmly planted on the turf if "sometimes I got too much exposure in the Press".

While Swan lived for his sport and club, Boyles noted that he had the ability to rebound quickly when things didn't go in Town's favour.

"He was just like 'It happened, so what. Let's move on'. That was his personality. Resilient in all situations."

Perhaps, suggested the coach, there is a valuable lesson in Swan's philosophy for those who mourn his passing.

"I don't think he would want us to stop and be sad. That wasn't him. He would be saying 'Let's keep it going'."

That is exactly what his club intends to do.

Boyles assured that, despite their pain, the Hornets ? atop the Premier Division at the halfway stage ? will fulfil their agreement to compete in the Champions Cup.

"I'm almost certain we're going to play because that was our commitment before and I don't think we're going to renege on that. It's highly unlikely that we would do that to the BFA (Bermuda Football Association) at this point," he said, dismissing any ideas of a late withdrawal.

Hornets skipper Lionel Furbert put aside personal differences to applaud his team-mate's positive brand of football and hailed him a great player in the making.

"It was no secret he and I didn't always see eye-to-eye but one thing I knew was that he was a winner and he always wanted to win ? all the time, every game," said the captain, calling Swan "the best ball winner in local football".

"There wasn't anybody on the field who he didn't want to mark, for example Raymond Beach from Cougars or Ralph (Gumbo) Bean of Village. He felt he was best and he wanted to mark the best strikers. That was his attitude.

"I don't feel he reached his potential to be the best defender in Bermuda and it's unfortunate he went so young because eventually he would have been the best.

"It's a big loss for Dandy Town because he was our present and our future. They are some big shoes to fill."

The BFA's second vice-president Gregory Grimes extended condolences to the soccer player's relatives and team on the national governing body's behalf.

"The loss of any footballer is a loss to the family of football," he said.

Former Bermuda coach Kenny Thompson, who summoned the tough-tackling footballer to national duty earlier this year, added his voice to those eulogising Swan whom he first encountered in Village's youth ranks.

While impressed by the defender, he lamented that the full-back's appearances for his country were limited because of injury. Swan, who was part of the Island's World Cup squad against Montserrat, played in friendlies against Trinidad & Tobago here in February. He also represented Dandy Town against Barbados last Christmas and was adjudged man-of-the-match.

Chuckling at the memory of how Swan came to Thompson's attention, Boyles explained that the Hornets defender took it upon himself to attend national team training though initially overlooked by Thompson.

"A few weeks later Kenny called me to say Randy has been training and can I give him some feedback on him," recalled Boyles.

"I said 'No, come to a game and see him'. So he came and saw Randy and it confirmed what he had been seeing in training."

Swan's untimely death has been made even more heart-wrenching by the fact that only in May he graduated from Bermuda College with a degree in business administration and, since his accident, his family received confirmation that he was awarded a soccer scholarship to continue studying at a North American university.

It is the second time in as many months that Dandy Town have lost a member with Dion Woodley dying last month after a bike accident.