Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Rio: I’m doing fatherhood properly with fourth kid
EXCLUSIVE
RIO FERDINAND feels like he’s experiencing fatherhood for the first time with son Cree as he was away so much with his other children.
The former Manchester United and England star, 42, welcomed his fourth child with wife Kate before Christmas. He also has three children Lorenz, 14, Tate, 12, and Tia, nine, who he shared with his late wife, Rebecca.
He admitted that his sacrifices as a footballer made him miss out on a lot of their lives. He explained: “I was probably not there 75% of the time. I was on the road travelling around Europe and playing games. When I was there, was I really there mentally? I used that excuse, ‘Oh I’ve got a game’ I probably left an hour early.
“For all elite sportsmen, their families play second fiddle to their careers. The family is the sacrifice. I missed the births of one of my kids.
“As a sportsman, you have to accept missing milestones whereas it’s reversed a little bit now. My family is the centrepoint of everything. Any job I take. So this is like doing it for the first time properly so it’s really nice in that sense.”
Rio, who married former TOWIE star Kate, 29, in 2019, admitted the lockdown had also forced him to be a more hands-on parent too.
He told The Midpoint podcast: “Parenting is such a different challenge [to football]. It’s rewarding without getting the trophy.
“You see the way your kids flourish. These are the kind of rewards I love to hear and it’s better than getting a trophy almost.”
A MAN guilty of contempt of court by lying about drug taking and altering an anger management report will be jailed for any repeat, a judge warned.
The man, reported as YZ, was given a two-month suspended term for giving false evidence at a child contact hearing in 2017.
Mr Justice Mcfarland said: “This requires a custodial order as it is so serious a fine would not mark the disapproval of the court or act as a sufficient deterrent.
“The suspension is a warning that should he be guilty of a further contempt then this punishment is likely to be put into operation.”
ECONOMY Minister Diane Dodds has denied “political stunts” over her party’s refusal to engage with Dublin over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
The DUP said it wants to send a “strong signal” to the Irish Government by stopping North-south activities related to the mechanism.
The plan was announced amid what it termed the “crisis” over post-brexit arrangements. Mrs Dodds said: “We have indicated to our Government they need to act but we also need to send a message to the Republic that Northsouth relationships are impacted by the protocol for which they are cheerleaders and which damages agreements they purport to uphold, along with the damage it does to our businesses, consumers and communities.”