Friends and fiancee pay tribute to Desborough man killed in A14 crash

Captains Lee Thomas and Adam Green with James Burton's partner Jaydean Neal before the game

Jaydean Neal,20, said she and James Burton, 24, were due to be married on August 28 at St Giles Church in Desborough.

She said: “Everything was arranged. We’d been together for over two years, and we just clicked.

“We were living together in Desborough. It was always me and him. We did everything together.”

James died in hospital after an accident on the A14 in Northamptonshire at about 11.15am on Tuesday, April 5.

His van was in a collision with an articulated lorry on the eastbound carriageway of the A14, between junction 1 at the A5199 and junction 2, at the A508 Market Harborough to Northampton road.

James was a keen footballer, playing most recently for Medbourne.

His friends organised a memorial football game for him in Market Harborough at the weekend.

Back, Team Jim, and front, Little Bowden

One of his friends, Jordan Drew, said: “James was awesome – the most genuine, nice lad, who would do anything for his mates and for others.

“The charity football match was just an occasion for us all to get together prior to the funeral, and remember Jim.”

The match has so far raised £880 for the air ambulance.

Jaydean said James had called her at about 11am on the day of the accident to say he would be home for lunch.

She said: “I had a gut feeling something was wrong because he was late. And then two policemen knocked on my door...”

Jaydean, an estate agent, said she was determined to try to carry on with her life, on behalf of herself and James.

She said: “I loved him more than anything else in the world.

“And all my family are deeply saddened too – they treated him like part of the family from the day they met him.

“Now I just want to be happy, carefree and fearless, because you never know what’s round the corner.”

Jordan said all the players in Sunday’s charity football match had at one point been in a team with James.

He said: “There were 30 grown lads standing round in a circle, sniffling.”

There’s a justgiving page in memory of James Burton at https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/Jamesburton.