Football prepares to bid farewell to trailblazer

Football prepares to bid farewell to trailblazer 



Fans and the football community today joined the family of trailblazing striker Cyrille Regis to pay their respects at his memorial service at the stadium where he made his name.



Hundreds of people turned out to pay their respects to the former England and West Brom star as his cortege passed The Hawthorns stadium and headed for his funeral service.



And thousands, including football legends John Barnes, Ron Atkinson, Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Les Ferdinand and Chris Kamara, later packed out the East Stand of the Premier League ground for a public memorial service to celebrate his life.



Regis, who died suddenly on January 14, was described as one of the modern game's 'pioneers' and a 'crusader against bigotry' in a time when racism was rife in football. His friend Darren Moore, who is a coach at WBA, today described him as 'an absolute gent, a friend, a mentor, a role model'.



His nephew and former footballer Jason Roberts said: ‘For all my life it has been easy to be Cyrille Regis' nephew. But today carrying his coffin with my father and my cousins, it was the first time it's been hard to be Cyrille Regis' nephew.'



'Bring Him Home' from 'Les Miserables' was sung by Chris Love to open the service, with club anthem 'The Lord's My Shepherd' also played. Chants of 'Nice one Cyrille, nice one son' were heard around the ground from the 2,000-strong crowd in attendance.





Mr Moore spoke about the role Regis played behind the scenes, offering advice, friendship and support.



Moore said: 'What a great man he was. For me he was an absolute gent, a friend, a mentor, a role model. All that goes with that.



'We're here to pay our respects and support for the family. It's an emotional day.'



Regis was described as 'our brightest star' by Jonathan Barnett, chairman of the Stellar Agency where Regis worked as an agent.



'As a player he was strong, direct, cool and resilient, as an agent he showed every one of those qualities and so much more,' he said.



'We had a young client on the fringes of the game, struggling at home, making mistakes, beset with demons. There was only one man for the job, and in Cyrille went. A decade later that client is a Premier League star who owes everything to Cyrille.'





Former team-mate Brendon Batson said: 'We played at a time when black players endured vile abuse but Cyrille never lost his cool, nor was he ever intimidated. It motivated him to play even better.



'How could anyone think they could intimidate the big man? You couldn't. We are blessed to have known him. Nice one Cyrille, nice one son.'



The celebration was planned by Cyrille's widow Julia and the couple's children, and will honour the late Baggies striker's own last wishes.



She said: 'We want the event to celebrate Cyrille's life and to be an uplifting occasion. This is how he wanted to be remembered.'





Regis was very clear about how he wanted this day to be and the songs, lively atmosphere and personal tributes are a reflection of his wishes, along with those of his wife Julia and his children Robert and Michelle.



There were from across the many facets of his life delivered by Brendon Batson, Graham Daniels from Christian in Sport, football agent and Chairman of Stellar Group Jonathan Barnett, John Sillett, manager of the Coventry City team with whom Cyrille won the FA Cup and John Homer, Chairman of WBA's Official Supporter Club.



Family tributes were provided by Regis' children Robert and Michelle, his nephew and former Albion striker Jason Roberts and his brother and ex-professional footballer Dave Regis. The eulogy was read by his widow, Julia.





Among those who were there are former footballers Brendon Batson, Mark Bright, Les Ferdinand, Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke.



Ian Wright, Mark Walters, Dion Dublin, Paul Ince, Jason Roberts – Cyrille's nephew – and Viv Anderson were also there to honour their friend.



Before the service, Baggies manager Alan Pardew led his team and staff outside the club's megastore and there was a round of applause as the procession went past.



Regis was a trailblazer for black players in English football and made 297 appearances for the Baggies, scoring 112 goals.



He earned five caps for England and won the FA Cup with Coventry in 1987.



Tributes poured in earlier this month for a man, described by his wife as 'a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle'.



He is survived by his wife, who he married in 2006, his children from his first marriage, Robert and Michelle, and his grandchildren, Jayda, Renee and Riley.





Regis was described as one of the modern game's 'pioneers' and a 'crusader against bigotry'.