beardy

Players who played under Beard - affectionately known as 'Beardy' to family and friends - formed a guard of honour inside the cathedral as his coffin, draped in two red and white scarves, arrived.

Gilly Flaherty: "Absolutely devastated and lost for words at the news of losing Beardy tonight. A man I thought so highly of, who in all honesty I would've followed around the world to play for. The best manager & friend I could've ever had asked to have in my life. Rest easy beardy & give my dad a big squeeze please love you gaffer xx"

Toni Duggan: "So very, very sad. Rip Beardy. Sending all my love and a lot of strength to your friends and family. A great man gone far too soon."

Rachel Daly: "Absolutely heartbreaking. A truly special man with a heart of gold. RIP Beardy."

But then, I ran closer, and of course it wasn’t him, it was a generic old beardy guy with binoculars, someone else’s father, perhaps.