The great and the good of British football came out in force in Preston on Thursday to honour the passing of Sir Tom Finney CBE.
Thousands of people lined the streets of Preston to see the funeral cortege as it travelled from Deepdale stadium to Preston Minster.
The minster itself was packed with many figures from football and the city to pay tribute to the former England winger, who died aged 91 two weeks ago
Finney won 76 caps and scored 30 international goals, and played for Preston all his career, making 569 first-class appearances.
Sir Tom Finney during his playing days
Sir Trevor Brooking, the former England international who represented the Football Association at the funeral service, said: "He was one of the most genuine individuals you would ever be likely to meet. Everyone admired and respected him.
"To come to this event today, over 50 years since he played, and see all these people both here in the minster and on the streets, I can't think of many who would get the same reaction.
"As a player, he was the match-winner, the crowd-pleaser, the one who could make the difference - I was a youngster in primary school when he was playing, I would watch him on a black and white telly and then go out into the garden with my brother to try to emulate him."
The funeral cortege travelled from Preston's Deepdale home - Finney was born on a street next to the stadium in 1922 - with a mounted police escort from the Lancashire Constabulary to the minster.
The Preston and District Veterans' Association also joined the cortege to mark his service as a tank driver in the Royal Armoured Corps during the Second World War.
The funeral service was shown live on a big screen inside Preston's ground to a crowd of several thousand people.
Preston City Council had planned for tens of thousands to line the streets, with a number of schools giving children time off to attend the event.
“Tom didn't dive, he didn't feign injury. He was the footballers' footballer”
Jimmy Armfield
Finney was nicknamed the 'Preston Plumber' - his father insisted he train as plumber and he continued working in the family business throughout his career: useful extra income in the days of the maximum wage for players.
He was regarded as one of the true greats of English football - and his record of caps and goals came despite having lost six years to the war.
Jimmy Armfield, England's former World Cup captain who played against Finney when he was at Blackpool, delivered an address in which he paid tribute to his attitude.
"Tom didn't dive, he didn't feign injury, that wasn't part of his repertoire. He was the footballers' footballer.
"He was a real all-round athlete and in my opinion one of the real sporting icons that has ever come out of these isles.
"He was world famous but he never won a championship medal or an FA Cup winner's medal - though he won something much more important: the hearts of his team-mates, the supporters, opposing players even and of the whole country."
