Arildson's death stuns Halmstad

Halmstads BK are a club in mourning following the sudden death of their vice-chairman, Kjell Arildson.

Collapsed at hotel
Arildson collapsed at the squad's hotel in Hamburg on Wednesday evening en route to a training camp in the Netherlands. The club physiotherapist, Claes Norryds, attempted to resuscitate him, but it was in vain. The cause of death is still not known.

'A great leader'
Arildson, who was 61, had worked for the Allsvenskan club for many years and chairman Bengt Sjöholm praised his contribution. "He was a great leader and a friend who has now left us all too soon," he said. "Even though it's a huge loss for us as he was a very important piece in the day-to-day running of the club, our thoughts go out to his family and relatives who have been hit by this tragedy."

Thern shocked
After a squad meeting, the Halmstad players continued on to the Holland as planned. Halmstad coach Jonas Thern said: "It all happened very fast and out of the blue. Of course it's a huge shock for us all. The atmosphere was obviously rather subdued, but we had a meeting where we talked about it and we will now focus on football"