Famous faces in the world of football gathered at the magnificent 11th century Durham Cathedral, one of Europe's great buildings, on Monday to pay respect to one of the sport's most popular men.
Former England, Ipswich, Newcastle and Barcelona manager Sir Bobby Robson passed away from cancer in July aged 76.
Sir Bobby was manager of the England team which almost won the 1990 World Cup.
Amongst those at the service was the current England manager Fabia Capello, former England managers Sven Goran Eriksson and Graham Taylor, 1966 World Cup winners Jack and Bobby Charlton, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and members of Sir Bobby's England team that came so close in 1990.
Also at the service were ten representatives of Barcelona, where Sir Bobby had a successful managerial career in the 1990s, and representatives from Portuguese champions Porto.
In that 1990 World Cup England team was Paul Gascoigne, who famously cried when England got beat by Germany on penalties in the Semi-Final (though that wasn't the only match in which Gazza had shed tears), and Gary Lineker.
Lineker, who is England's top scorer in World Cups and is now the presenter of the BBC football show Match of the Day, said during a speech that Sir Bobby was: "A lion of a man. No, make that three lions."
Gazza, who was at the service, has described Sir Bobby as his "second dad."
Ferguson, whose Manchester United team beat Manchester City 4-3 the day before said: "It is one of the privileges of my life to know him."
"He influenced me then, he'll always influence me.'
Ferguson recalled his 'trepidation' when travelling to see Robson in Ipswich prior to Aberdeen's UEFA Cup tie in 1981. Robson not only welcomed the young Ferguson in, he invited him to watch Ipswich train!
Fans also watched the service on big screen in Newcastle, Ipswich and Fulham, where Sir Bobby played in the 1950s.
Farewell to a football lion: Moving tribute to Sir Bobby Robson, a beloved man and manager
By Michael Walker
23rd September 2009
The service was held in the magnificent Durham Cathedral in Sir Bobby's beloved North East of England
In the venerated setting of towering Durham cathedral, football said a mournful, respectful, joyous and affectionate farewell to the 'generous heart' of Sir Bobby Robson yesterday.
It was a mighty send-off. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson led the tributes with a speech that was humorous and loving and which was marked by the word 'influence'.
Gary Lineker defined Robson, his former England manager, in the phrase: 'A lion of a man. No, make that three lions.'
The football family pays its respects: (from left to right) Alan Shearer, Fabio Capello, Sir Alex Ferguson, Paul Gascoigne and Gary Lineker watch during the Sir Bobby Robson Thanksgiving Service at Durham Cathedral on Monday
In the grandeur of this 11th-century architectural marvel, the managers of England gathered, several less than 24 hours after a ferocious weekend of Premier League football, to say goodbye to a lion of their own.
Ferguson, Everton manager David Moyes, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, Sunderland manager Steve Bruce, Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, Wolves manager Mick McCarthy and Blackburn Rovers Sam Allardyce were joined by England manager Fabio Capello and his immediate predecessors Steve McClaren and Sven Goran Eriksson.
Leading the tributes: Ferguson delivered a loving and humorous speech marked by the word 'influence'
The natural gravitas of Durham was enhanced by their presence. Sitting among them were Sir Bobby Charlton and brother Jack, Lineker, Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne, Terry Butcher and the current Newcastle United squad.
The North East was further represented by Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn and Middlesbrough chief executive Keith Lamb.
From Barcelona came president Joan Laporta and no fewer than nine others; from Porto came Victor Baia, from PSV Eindhoven, Frits Schuitema.
They came because of William Robert Robson, who died in July of cancer at the age of 76. He would have thrived in such a gathering, would have been half-embarrassed by the fuss but half-proud, too.
'Top-tops,' was an expression he used about certain players. Yesterday he would have been saying 'top-tops' once more.
Robson's wife of 54 years, Elsie, and her family must have felt his absence as achingly as ever.
Farewell: Former England star Terry Butcher, who played in the 1990 World Cup and is now manager of Scottish team Inverness Caledonian Thistle, (left) and former England manager Terry Venables (right) attended the send-off
Yet they must also have been partially consoled that the country which invented football turned this from a memorial service for one man into a sporting state occasion.
Robson grew up a Durham lad but his unique career took him away from a life in the pits and out across the continent to Holland, Spain and Portugal.
Present: 1966 World Cup winners Sir Bobby (left) and Jack Charlton (right)
There have been many salutes since his death: minutes of silence, minutes of applause and a steepling wave of scarves and memories at St James' Park.
Yesterday's service was beamed back there, and to Portman Road and Craven Cottage. Saturday's game between Ipswich Town and Newcastle will see both teams wearing commemorative shirts.
Former Ipswich stars: (left to right) Russell Osman, Paul Mariner and John Wark
Some might have thought it over the top. But yesterday it did not feel that way, not when you heard Ferguson preaching from a pulpit about Robson's 'generosity' and 'that enthusiasm'.
'It is one of the privileges of my life to know him,' added Ferguson. 'He influenced me then, he'll always influence me.'
Ferguson recalled his 'trepidation' when travelling to see Robson in Ipswich prior to Aberdeen's UEFA Cup tie in 1981. Robson not only welcomed the young Ferguson in, he invited him to watch Ipswich train.
Robson knew, as Ferguson explained: 'There are no secrets in football. It's how you impart your knowledge. He influenced me, but what made him so special was that he influenced people he didn't know.'
Three Lions: England bosses past and present Graham Taylor (left), Sven Goran Eriksson (centre) and Fabio Capello observed the warm and affectionate tributes
Once Aberdeen had triumphed in the second leg, Robson entered the home dressing room to offer his congratulations. 'Go on and win it,' Robson told the Aberdeen players.
Ferguson then added some grit to the proceedings with a remark about ageism that would have left Robson's former chairman at Newcastle Freddy Shepherd uncomfortable in his pew.
Gazza famously cried after Sir Bobby Robson's England were narrowly beaten by Germany in the 1990 World Cup semi-final.
Robson could be as ferocious as the next manager, but such magnanimity as was witnessed that night at Pittodrie endeared him to people, which is why so many were in Durham.
Outside on the cobbles of Sadler Street, fans wearing Newcastle and Sunderland colours lined the path up to the cathedral. It did not feel inappropriate.
Saying goodbye: BBC football commentator John Motson
With Gascoigne there at the front of the cathedral and Nessun Dorma sung again at the end, it felt like some sort of circle had been completed from Italia 90. We now accept that was the World Cup which changed English football and, after Heysel and Hillsborough, placed it back at the centre of the nation's culture.
As Lineker reinforced, Robson was at the heart of that as much as Gascoigne's tears.
For the ceremony to be televised live was another reminder of the status of the game today (and of the demands of 24-hour TV).
Robson would have been bemused at some of this. As he said in the opening line of his last book: 'I was born into a black and white world. Some of my earliest, most treasured memories are set in monochrome.'
He was a man of the 20th century, born between the wars, one who knew his father Philip's mining life. As his colleague Tom Wilson said of their Fulham days together, Robson worked part-time as an electrician. They saved up to buy 'spam fritters'.
If anything, yesterday was a celebration of the distance Robson travelled from there and then: to the Nou Camp, England, World Cups and the Champions League with Newcastle. This was a unique journey. As Ferguson said, Robson made it while staying essentially the same man: 'A great talent.'
Ruth Plummer from Robson's cancer charity said Sir Bobby was still travelling in July, despite being gravely ill, to Portugal to help with an orphanage. It was another display of the 'contagious and unquenchable enthusiasm' Lineker mentioned.
Fitting: Gascoigne, flanked by Venables, Ferguson and Lineker, sheds a tear, just as he famously did under Robson's management at the World Cup in 1990
Prior to The Last Post being played, the Bishop of Newcastle, Martin Wharton, quoted St Irenaeus: 'The glory of God is a human being fully alive.'
When Bobby Robson is remembered by those who knew him, it will be as a man fully alive.
dailymail.co.uk
Former England, Ipswich, Newcastle and Barcelona manager Sir Bobby Robson passed away from cancer in July aged 76.
Sir Bobby was manager of the England team which almost won the 1990 World Cup.
Amongst those at the service was the current England manager Fabia Capello, former England managers Sven Goran Eriksson and Graham Taylor, 1966 World Cup winners Jack and Bobby Charlton, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and members of Sir Bobby's England team that came so close in 1990.
Also at the service were ten representatives of Barcelona, where Sir Bobby had a successful managerial career in the 1990s, and representatives from Portuguese champions Porto.
In that 1990 World Cup England team was Paul Gascoigne, who famously cried when England got beat by Germany on penalties in the Semi-Final (though that wasn't the only match in which Gazza had shed tears), and Gary Lineker.
Lineker, who is England's top scorer in World Cups and is now the presenter of the BBC football show Match of the Day, said during a speech that Sir Bobby was: "A lion of a man. No, make that three lions."
Gazza, who was at the service, has described Sir Bobby as his "second dad."
Ferguson, whose Manchester United team beat Manchester City 4-3 the day before said: "It is one of the privileges of my life to know him."
"He influenced me then, he'll always influence me.'
Ferguson recalled his 'trepidation' when travelling to see Robson in Ipswich prior to Aberdeen's UEFA Cup tie in 1981. Robson not only welcomed the young Ferguson in, he invited him to watch Ipswich train!
Fans also watched the service on big screen in Newcastle, Ipswich and Fulham, where Sir Bobby played in the 1950s.
Farewell to a football lion: Moving tribute to Sir Bobby Robson, a beloved man and manager
By Michael Walker
23rd September 2009
The service was held in the magnificent Durham Cathedral in Sir Bobby's beloved North East of England
In the venerated setting of towering Durham cathedral, football said a mournful, respectful, joyous and affectionate farewell to the 'generous heart' of Sir Bobby Robson yesterday.
It was a mighty send-off. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson led the tributes with a speech that was humorous and loving and which was marked by the word 'influence'.
Gary Lineker defined Robson, his former England manager, in the phrase: 'A lion of a man. No, make that three lions.'
The football family pays its respects: (from left to right) Alan Shearer, Fabio Capello, Sir Alex Ferguson, Paul Gascoigne and Gary Lineker watch during the Sir Bobby Robson Thanksgiving Service at Durham Cathedral on Monday
In the grandeur of this 11th-century architectural marvel, the managers of England gathered, several less than 24 hours after a ferocious weekend of Premier League football, to say goodbye to a lion of their own.
Ferguson, Everton manager David Moyes, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp, Sunderland manager Steve Bruce, Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, Wolves manager Mick McCarthy and Blackburn Rovers Sam Allardyce were joined by England manager Fabio Capello and his immediate predecessors Steve McClaren and Sven Goran Eriksson.
Leading the tributes: Ferguson delivered a loving and humorous speech marked by the word 'influence'
The natural gravitas of Durham was enhanced by their presence. Sitting among them were Sir Bobby Charlton and brother Jack, Lineker, Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne, Terry Butcher and the current Newcastle United squad.
The North East was further represented by Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn and Middlesbrough chief executive Keith Lamb.
From Barcelona came president Joan Laporta and no fewer than nine others; from Porto came Victor Baia, from PSV Eindhoven, Frits Schuitema.
They came because of William Robert Robson, who died in July of cancer at the age of 76. He would have thrived in such a gathering, would have been half-embarrassed by the fuss but half-proud, too.
'Top-tops,' was an expression he used about certain players. Yesterday he would have been saying 'top-tops' once more.
Robson's wife of 54 years, Elsie, and her family must have felt his absence as achingly as ever.
Farewell: Former England star Terry Butcher, who played in the 1990 World Cup and is now manager of Scottish team Inverness Caledonian Thistle, (left) and former England manager Terry Venables (right) attended the send-off
Yet they must also have been partially consoled that the country which invented football turned this from a memorial service for one man into a sporting state occasion.
Robson grew up a Durham lad but his unique career took him away from a life in the pits and out across the continent to Holland, Spain and Portugal.
Present: 1966 World Cup winners Sir Bobby (left) and Jack Charlton (right)
There have been many salutes since his death: minutes of silence, minutes of applause and a steepling wave of scarves and memories at St James' Park.
Yesterday's service was beamed back there, and to Portman Road and Craven Cottage. Saturday's game between Ipswich Town and Newcastle will see both teams wearing commemorative shirts.
Former Ipswich stars: (left to right) Russell Osman, Paul Mariner and John Wark
Some might have thought it over the top. But yesterday it did not feel that way, not when you heard Ferguson preaching from a pulpit about Robson's 'generosity' and 'that enthusiasm'.
'It is one of the privileges of my life to know him,' added Ferguson. 'He influenced me then, he'll always influence me.'
Ferguson recalled his 'trepidation' when travelling to see Robson in Ipswich prior to Aberdeen's UEFA Cup tie in 1981. Robson not only welcomed the young Ferguson in, he invited him to watch Ipswich train.
Robson knew, as Ferguson explained: 'There are no secrets in football. It's how you impart your knowledge. He influenced me, but what made him so special was that he influenced people he didn't know.'
Three Lions: England bosses past and present Graham Taylor (left), Sven Goran Eriksson (centre) and Fabio Capello observed the warm and affectionate tributes
Once Aberdeen had triumphed in the second leg, Robson entered the home dressing room to offer his congratulations. 'Go on and win it,' Robson told the Aberdeen players.
Ferguson then added some grit to the proceedings with a remark about ageism that would have left Robson's former chairman at Newcastle Freddy Shepherd uncomfortable in his pew.
Gazza famously cried after Sir Bobby Robson's England were narrowly beaten by Germany in the 1990 World Cup semi-final.
Robson could be as ferocious as the next manager, but such magnanimity as was witnessed that night at Pittodrie endeared him to people, which is why so many were in Durham.
Outside on the cobbles of Sadler Street, fans wearing Newcastle and Sunderland colours lined the path up to the cathedral. It did not feel inappropriate.
Saying goodbye: BBC football commentator John Motson
With Gascoigne there at the front of the cathedral and Nessun Dorma sung again at the end, it felt like some sort of circle had been completed from Italia 90. We now accept that was the World Cup which changed English football and, after Heysel and Hillsborough, placed it back at the centre of the nation's culture.
As Lineker reinforced, Robson was at the heart of that as much as Gascoigne's tears.
For the ceremony to be televised live was another reminder of the status of the game today (and of the demands of 24-hour TV).
Robson would have been bemused at some of this. As he said in the opening line of his last book: 'I was born into a black and white world. Some of my earliest, most treasured memories are set in monochrome.'
He was a man of the 20th century, born between the wars, one who knew his father Philip's mining life. As his colleague Tom Wilson said of their Fulham days together, Robson worked part-time as an electrician. They saved up to buy 'spam fritters'.
If anything, yesterday was a celebration of the distance Robson travelled from there and then: to the Nou Camp, England, World Cups and the Champions League with Newcastle. This was a unique journey. As Ferguson said, Robson made it while staying essentially the same man: 'A great talent.'
Ruth Plummer from Robson's cancer charity said Sir Bobby was still travelling in July, despite being gravely ill, to Portugal to help with an orphanage. It was another display of the 'contagious and unquenchable enthusiasm' Lineker mentioned.
Fitting: Gascoigne, flanked by Venables, Ferguson and Lineker, sheds a tear, just as he famously did under Robson's management at the World Cup in 1990
Prior to The Last Post being played, the Bishop of Newcastle, Martin Wharton, quoted St Irenaeus: 'The glory of God is a human being fully alive.'
When Bobby Robson is remembered by those who knew him, it will be as a man fully alive.
dailymail.co.uk
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