The former Blues player died in a jet-ski accident in January 2023, at the age of 25.
Kelly Griffiths visits her son’s grave on a daily basis. She settles into a fold-up chair and, on exceptionally chilly days, clutches a hot water bottle, staying at his side until Brockley and Ladywell Cemetery shuts in the evening.
Every third day, she lays fresh flowers, her favourites being pink and white lilies and blue roses. Knowing how much delight they provided his mother, he would order them on a regular basis. Anton Walkes, a former Pompey and Spurs footballer, died in a jet-ski accident in Miami, Florida, over 15 months ago.
He was 25 years old and was attending a 12-day pre-season training camp with MLS club Charlotte FC after settling in America with partner Alexis and little daughter Ayla. For the player’s bereaved South London family, the actual details of his January 2023 death remain frustratingly vague, deepening their painful loss.
Kelly and boyfriend Lee were recently moved by Pompey’s invitation to represent their beloved son at last weekend’s Former Players’ Day at Fratton Park. As a Wembley winner with the Blues in March 2019, it was a classy gesture that demonstrated Walkes’ enduring popularity among Fratton fans.
‘You need your own room to think, cry, and grieve. I spend my sad time seeing Anton. “I sit with him every day and talk,” Kelly told The News in her first interview since the family’s tragedy.
‘I know that seems crazy, but I need to be with him; that’s how I deal with this. It’s hard to leave Anton, so I usually stay for 4-5 hours until the cemetery closes.
‘I keep a fold-up chair at his headstone and spend almost the entire day there in all weather, rain, wind, or snow. Anton was my best buddy; we spoke on the phone every day, and it is critical that I continue to communicate with him.
‘There are constantly leaves blowing about his grave, so I clean it up every day, keeping a fold-up broom and headstone cleaning supplies in my van. I also take fresh flowers every three days, however they don’t survive very long. I want it to appear great.
‘I would never eat in front of him; it would be rude, as Anton liked food so much. Instead, I go to Sainsbury’s for a meal deal at lunchtime and return in the afternoon.Our family paid Anton a visit on Sunday morning, after we returned to Pompey. I informed him how our trip went; there’s a new team, but Sean Raggett is still there. And they are top of the league, sure to
Be promoted to the Championship. Anton would have loved to have accomplished it after working so closely with them. I also told him about his inclusion in Pompey’s 125th Anniversary book and showed him the page. There’s a large photo of him lifting the Checkatrade Trophy. We’ll put the book in the display case beside Anton’s other medals and awards.Saturday marked the first time we had visited Fratton Park without seeing him. I cried because it dawned on me that he would never come out after the game to see us with his huge lovely smile, my gentle giant.
‘I have dreams about Anton, and you wake up crying because it strikes you like a ton of bricks. Suddenly, we’re back to reality. We have no
There is no alternative except to live day by day, minute by minute, hour by hour, and endure this nightmare. ‘We’ll never get over it. Not in this life.
Walkes joined Pompey on loan from Spurs in January 2018, scoring on his debut in a 2-2 draw against Doncaster, before making the transfer permanent that summer.
Over two years, he appeared as right-back, left-back, centre-half, and holding midfielder, scoring three goals in 66 matches. He started the Blues’ League One play-off semi-final first leg against Sunderland in May 2019, which resulted in a 1-0 aggregate defeat for a team that had previously led the table for three-and-a-half months.
However, he did taste Wembley triumph in March 2019, coming off the bench in the Checkatrade Trophy final penalty shootout victory over the Black Cats.
As a tribute, Walkes’ celebrating shot with the trophy appeared with chairman Michael Eisner’s foreword in Pompey’s recently issued 125th Anniversary history book, which was officially presented to the family last weekend during their visit to Shrewsbury.
Dad Lee Walkes added: “I was in tears when Pompey fans clapped the players off at the end of the game against Shrewsbury.” I imagined Anton on that pitch, cheering the fans and waving to us.
‘That’s the first time I’ve watched a full match since he died; it had become too hard for me to watch football, even on television. I look at where he would be, what he would be doing, and I see players run and tackle, and it aches. It still feels too raw for me.
‘It still feels like Anton died yesterday. Am I having a dream or a nightmare? Am I dreaming, and will I wake up?
‘We’ve become reclusive and shut ourselves away. People don’t know how to manage us or are preoccupied with saying the correct thing, so I don’t mind the loneliness.
‘Apart from Anton’s burial, I haven’t mixed with anyone. Kelly visits his grave every day.
But I can’t; she’s stronger than me. Pompey, on the other hand, was another stepping stone in the recovery process, as it allowed him to be among others and speak. ‘Some people approached us and complimented Anton on his charming personality, which we much enjoyed. We last saw him play at Fratton Park, and it was encouraging to hear that people still think highly of him there.
‘Anton was kind, loving, down to earth and very humble. We’ve seen some youngsters who grew up with him around football change, they get arrogant, a bit flashy, yet he remained grounded and big-hearted.
‘He’d buy T-shirts for £10 from H&M, never flash, nothing designer. He wasn’t bothered about money, football was what he loved.
‘At the age of 12, for the whole six weeks of one half-term, I decided he wasn’t going to use his right foot and would try to improve his left. After day four, he said “Dad, I don’t want to use my left foot anymore. My leg is hurting”. I had to massage his left calf before he went to bed! ‘It got to the stage where people asked whether he was right or left footed – and he played at both right-back and left-back for Pompey.
‘He was in Leyton Orient’s development centre when Spurs spotted him. He attended a pre-trial with about 60 kids present. The parents weren’t allowed to watch, instead the kids were led away.
‘Later we were pulled into a little room and Spurs’ youth-team coach announced: “We’ve had a look at all your kids today, they’re all good and can improve in certain attributes. But there’s one, in particular, who we’re going to invite back”.
‘It was Anton. I was shocked and started clapping! Then he went to a trial at Spurs and they took him on, playing in the same age group as Kyle Walker-Peters and Harry Winks. ‘Everywhere he went in football, he always played like he was on trial, fighting for a position. He was so versatile, he needed to settle into a role. I’d have liked to have seen him in midfield more because of his speed, his long legs and the way he could use both feet.
‘I felt he would have become such a big star out in America. Even though he was 25, he was just starting his career, he was getting better and better, stronger, and still growing. ‘Anton was 6ft 1in at Pompey and last year measured 6ft 2in! He was still growing as a person and a character, there was plenty more to come.
‘He was a brilliant dad to Ayla, I’m glad I got to see him as a father. I am proud of Anton staying as Anton, there was never a change in him, I cannot believe we’re never going to see him again.’ At a September inquest into Walkes’ death, Southwark Coroner’s Court heard how the footballer was a passenger on a jet ski which collided with a 46ft scarab boat near Miami Marine Stadium.
He received ‘facial trauma’ from the January 2023 accident and passed away the following day, with the cause of death recorded as blunt force trauma.
Charlotte’s sporting director Zoran Krneta paid tribute to ‘an outstanding human being’ and heart-broken supporters laid flowers outside the Bank of America Stadium, with the MLS subsequently holding a minute’s silence on the opening day of their 2023 season.
Among mourners at Walkes’ March 2023 funeral in Brockley, Lewisham, were Kenny Jackett, the man who signed him for Pompey, along with Blues legend Alan Knight and the club’s Ashleigh Emberson. However, Lee insists the family remain in the dark over the full details of the accident – and now want answers.
The self-employed electrician said: ‘We haven’t had any explanation. We are waiting for a full investigation report, we are waiting to hear from the American police. It has been a nightmare.
‘We haven’t chased information, we’re still trying to find strength every day just to see ourselves through before considering taking on this next challenge. But the time is coming where we need to stand up and ask questions, making our own enquiries. ‘It was pre-season, you’re supposed to have your team protected and wrapped up in their hotel rooms, not riding jet skis. They said the players were on a day off. If that’s the case, Anton would have been at home with his daughter – not doing what killed him. That was no day off.
‘All we know is he was a passenger on a jet ski and was struck by a bigger boat. When we travelled to America following his passing, we met the team and it felt as though they’d been briefed, told to keep quiet.
‘It has been 14 months and we want answers. You get people saying they’ll help you, but everyone has now disappeared. As parents, there is no getting over this for me and Kelly.
‘We haven’t heard from Charlotte FC since Anton’s funeral. Not on the year anniversary of his passing, not on his birthday, not a bunch of flowers to Kelly on Mother’s Day, absolute squat. This is the player who died while in their care.
‘We should be told what led up to that day, how Anton and his team-mates came to be on those jet skis. Up until now, we don’t know the full details about what happened other than what we’ve read on the Internet and social media. We’re Anton’s parents. ‘We are struggling. I try to face everything, I keep myself busy at work to stop me thinking too much. If Anton was here, he’d be telling me to get up, not to let it beat me, I know he would.
‘Time isn’t going to be a great healer in this case. During the last 20 years, me and Kelly have both lost our mums, time has healed with that, but this is a bit different. This is our son, there’s no way we’re going to recover, it ain’t going to happen.
‘Then again, why should I have to get over it? I’m not even going to try. I’m just doing the best I can for my family. This is all we have left.’
Lee and Kelly, accompanied by their children Alana, aged 15, and Anderson, aged 12, visited Anton’s grave last Friday afternoon before embarking on an emotional return to the south coast.
It was their first visit to Fratton Park since witnessing their son play left-back in a 2-0 win against Wycombe on Boxing Day 2019, which propelled Jackett’s side to seventh place in League One.
As guests at Saturday’s Former Players’ Day, they were introduced to the 20,081 fans at halftime alongside Benjani, Guy Whittingham, Hermann Hreidarsson, and John Milkins.
More than four years ago, Walkes departed the Blues to rejoin MLS side Atlanta United in a reported £100,000 deal, before moving to Charlotte as a 2021 draft pick.
The Checkatrade Trophy winner, however, will always have a special place in the Pompey family’s hearts.
Kelly continued, ‘Pompey is where I believe my son was recognized, right there in Portsmouth. We are incredibly appreciative for their love.
‘I wept my eyes out the entire two-hour journey to Portsmouth. Coming back wasn’t easy, but it was something I needed to do.
‘We made sure to drive past Anton’s former home in Manor Crescent, Drayton, but couldn’t bring ourselves to stop. We also ate at Leilamezze, his favorite restaurant in Southsea. He enjoyed it there.
‘You could not ask for a better child. I know it’s a cliché, but Anton was flawless from the moment he was born until the day he died. Just perfect.
‘He slept through the night as a newborn, walked at eight months, rode a bike at six, and was incredibly kind and generous, constantly wanting to help people.
‘If we went shopping and he saw a pair of shoes he thought looked good on me, he’d buy them, even if I claimed I didn’t need them! He refused to listen; he wanted to do something pleasant for me.
‘Those shoes lay in my closet, still in their boxes and unworn. There are white Air Jordan footwear and black high heels. I’ll never wear them again since they’re exceptional.
‘As a family, we helped each other get through this, but I’m not the same person. Part of me also went That day, Anton died.’
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