Luke Walmsley was stabbed in the chest in January 2003

Jayne Walmsley told police her sports-mad son Luke, 14, wanted to skip rugby practice after school on the day he died, which was out of character.

Luke died from a stab wound suffered at Birbeck Secondary School, in Lincolnshire, on 4 January last year.

A 16-year-old fellow pupil, who cannot be named, has denied murder.

A statement from Mrs Walmsley was read to Nottingham Crown Court on Friday.

He was very quiet. He was hunched on the seat. His hands were clasped, almost in prayer Gary Loveridge, head teacher

She said she asked her son about why he wanted to miss training, but he told her not to fuss.

She said: "It was just not like Luke to miss rugby.

"I wanted to ring the school to get them to sort things out but he didn't want me to and told me to stop fussing."

Mrs Walmsley put him on the school bus and asked her partner, Mark Rowbotham, to ring the school.

Head teacher Gary Loveridge told the court he spoke to Mr Rowbotham on the morning of the tragedy and agreed to chat with Luke.

The planned conversation never took place.

'Hands clasped'

After the stabbing in a school corridor, Mr Loveridge said he asked the defendant where he stabbed Luke.

He told the court: "I am fairly sure he (the defendant) replied; 'In the leg'.

"He appeared very pale, which is not totally unusual.

"He was very quiet. He was hunched on the seat. His hands were clasped, almost in prayer.

"He was calm, he was quiet. He said very little in fact."