WESTBURY stonemason Nick Johnson is delighted with the reception his memorial honouring the First World War Christmas truce football game has had, following its unveiling last Friday.

England manager Roy Hodgson joined the Duke of Cambridge to unveil the statue, commemorating the match between German and Allied troops in December 1914, at the National Memorial Arboretum.

Mr Johnson, who has run Westbury stonemasonary Young Johnson for 25 years, was asked to build the memorial using the design of 10-year-old Spencer Turner, from Newcastle, who won a national competition backed by Prince William.

The prince and England forward Theo Walcott selected Spencer’s design following a competition involving more than 30,000 schools and he joined Mr Johnson to see the memorial unveiled.

Mr Johnson, 50, said: “It was a great day. I met Prince William and had a chat with him about the memorial and he was asking about how long it took to make.

“He also said how good it was, which was fantastic. I couldn’t believe how much coverage it got as it seemed to go everywhere. The young lad Spencer was a major part of it and his design was excellent.

“For a 10-year-old boy he is unbelievably articulate and his design was simple, but very clever. It took me about eight weeks to bring it all together and I am really chuffed with it.

“I also spoke to the England manager Roy Hodgson, who thought the memorial looked excellent, so it was great to speak to the future King and the manager of England on the same day.”

Mr Johnson also visited the National Memorial Arboretum on Armistice Day in November, when he met Roy Hodgson and England stars Theo Walcott, Joe Hart, Jack Butland and Nathan Redmond.

Speaking at the ceremony on Friday, Prince William said he was delighted to unveil the lasting monument to the Christmas truce, which is remembered for bringing the war to a temporary halt.

The prince said the design “perfectly captured” the essence of the truce. He added: “Football had the power to bring people together and break down barriers. It is vital that 100 years on we keep the Christmas truce story alive.”