The heartbroken mum whose 18-year-old son was stabbed to death at a party today branded his killers as "cowards."
Joe Ward, now 18, and a 15-year-old boy who cannot be named, were jailed this afternoon at Liverpool Crown Court.
The older teen was handed life behind bars, plus a 16-year minimum term, while the younger boy was given a seven year sentence for manslaughter and possession of a knife.
It followed a tragic fight at the British Legion Club in Runcorn on September 7, last year.
Ward, who had clashed with Eddie before over their affections for a teenage girl, was passed the "fearsome-looking" blade, which he used to slice into Eddie's abdomen.
That fatally cut through one of the main arteries which supplies blood to the lower limbs.
Today, in a hugely emotional Victim Impact Statement, Eddie's mum - Jayne White - described her son as "the man of the house" after the tragic passing of his dad.
The parent said: "How this has impacted us as a family?
"There will never be words for that.
"The pain, the sleepless nights, you have left my children without a decent brother, who was also like their father after their dad died.
"You have also left a mother without her son.
"Eddie was like our oxygen, our everything.
"Our lives will never be the same again because you two cowards took him away.
"You might have taken my son away but it’s me and my children who are suffering, and are feeling all this pain without my little boy Eddie.
"You have left our family in turmoil and we will be forever.
"There are no words to describe how we feel.
"You took the best thing away from us."
His sister Maddison added: "Losing Eddie has had a huge impact on our family because he was a one-of-a-kind brother and son.
"We looked up to him in many different ways.
"What those people did to my brother has made me feel empty inside, knowing we’re not going to see Eddie walking through the door again, or even hear his voice or see his smile again.
"My mum has lost her soulmate and her best friend because of these boys.
"My mum can’t sleep at night because all she is thinking about is her 'Eddie bomb'.
"My mum is heartbroken in every single way, but she’s staying strong.
"I know, and my family knows, that Eddie will be looking down on us all and he will be proud.
"Eddie’s last words were: 'Tell me mum and the kids I said I love them.'
"This proves that he was thinking about us when the incident happened. Mum stays strong for us kids.
"Eddie still thinks about us all to this day."
She said Eddie always wanted her to do well at school.
"He said he was going to start poking me about school," she said.
"We love you forever and always."
After the sentencing, family friend Louis Bamber, 24, joined up with friends, some of them wearing black Justice for Eddie T-shirts.
He said: "Eddie O'Rourke was a lovable rogue, who would take the time to help anybody and everybody no matter who you were.
"Eddie was a tenacious young man with a big place in his heart for his mum Jayne, his siblings and family, friends and those closest to him, who he'd devoted his whole life to.
"He was just 18 years old when he had his life brutally taken from him.
"We hope this sentence today can provide a strong message to those who think it is acceptable to carry a knife.
"It is not.
"Ultimately, Eddie did not deserve to lose his life so early on.
"Eddie's name will always live on in our campaign, live your life, drop the knife.
"And this murder proves you don't have to be involved in drugs or gangs to be a victim of knife crime.
"We hope to educate the next generations on the consequences of knife crime, using our experience of losing Eddie to make those make the right decisions."
