Sailor's ashes to come home
THE ashes of a legendary Gorleston footballer who died at the end of last year aged 93 will be brought back to the county in the spring by his family, along with those of his wife Daisy.
THE ashes of a legendary Gorleston footballer who died at the end of last year aged 93 will be brought back to the county in the spring by his family, along with those of his wife Daisy.
Robert 'Sailor' Brown achieved hero status in and around Yarmouth both for this exploits on the field with England, Charlton Athletic, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa and later for his extraordinary success with his home town side of Gorleston.
As reported in December shortly after his death, Sailor fell just short of superstardom partly because of the second world war and partly because of a heavy collision with a goalkeeper which effectively ended his top flight playing career.
But on his return to Gorleston he helped The Greens gain national fame in 1952 when they held Leyton Orient to two draws in the first round proper of the FA Cup.
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They eventually lost a second replay 5-4 at the neutral venue of Arsenal's old Highbury ground.
Sailor died in Scotland, where he and his wife Daisy, who died in 2001, had moved in their later years to be close to daughter Julie Munro and her family.
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A memorial service for Sailor, known as Bert to family and friends, will take place at the parish church in Gorleston on May 16 at 2pm. It will be followed by a reception at The Greens' home ground Emerald Park.
“We will have a private interment of ashes for both my dad and my mum the day before, but on Saturday everyone is welcome to come to the memorial and take part in what is most importantly a celebration of his life,” said Mrs Munro.
“He had been living in Scotland for some years, but really Gorleston is the right place for them to be now.
“The parish church is particularly right because they lived opposite for at least 40 years.
“Because the funeral was held in Scotland in early January, so many people who knew him for a long time missed out on saying farewell, so this is an ideal opportunity to do that.”
Mrs Munro said the authorities at the church had been “absolutely amazing” in their efforts to help the family achieve their wish.
