BRIAN HONOUR has paid tribute to his former Hartlepool United team-mate Eddie Blackburn, labelling him a true club hero.

Blackburn died last week aged 61. He and Honour were part of the Pools side in the mid-80s under Billy Horner in Divison Four.

Born in Houghton-le-Spring, he and Blackhall lad Honour became close friends at the club and remained in contact long after their playing days ended.

“I text just before Christmas, I know he was working at York train station and as a caretaker at a school in York – like you do, you keep in touch with teammates you respected,’’ reflected Honour.

Blackburn made 175 appearances for Pools from 1983-87 and is 69th in the club’s all-time appearance list.

“A character, that’s what he was – and a proper colliery lad,’’ said Honour. “He may have in affluent York, but kept his accent – it was marra this and marra that.

“He never trained in the week, the manager would give him days off, and when he trained he would play five a side or just have a walk around the docks. His other favourite was using the sauna in the Mill House Sports Centre.

“There was no goalkeeper coaching for him – it was gloves on 2.50 and out for the game.’’

Blackburn was part of football long before the days of sports science, fitness coaches and dieticians, and was a stickler for menthol cigarettes.

Honour added: “We had beans on toast, an omelette – that was the pre-match meal back in the day. For him it was a consulate and a coffee. On the team bus, a coffee out of the water machine and a fag.

“Before games he had a bath and a rub down, watch Football Focus with his tabs. Go in the dressing room, cover his chest in vicks, two fingers in the tub and then under his nostrils… he had a beard thick of paste!

“Under Billy Horner, we always had a bottle of whiskey on the table in the dressing room for us all, he would always had a nip of it – I tried and was violently sick.’’

In 1985-86 Pools, under Horner were even in with a shout of promotion from Division Four.

“We should have gone up really, but we had a bad winter were disrupted. We were in the top three or four by a mile. It was 4-4-2, me and Nigel Walker - another one sadly gone – out wide,’’ mused Honour.

“But the dressing room then was full of proper men - Eddie, Tony Smith, Roy Hogan, Alan Little, proper characters who could play and mix it a bit too.

“Looking back and it wasn’t a bad team which could scrap as well – and he was at the forefront of everything we did.

“Eddie was a normal bloke, I used to travel in with him. He was very down to earth, and a good goalkeeper for it too. The gaffer would give him days off ‘See you Thursday’ and he was pleased and we didn’t begrudge him for it.

“He was small in stature, but the reflexes were incredible. He looked like liked a tramp in the nicest way, even in the week.

“One year we went in pre-season to Amsterdam to play a game, he never took his club blazer off for four days and we went on the ferry overnight from Hull! The standing joke was it was glued on.’’

Blackburn also played for York and Hull. He ended his playing career in Sweden after leaving Pools in 1987.

His funeral takes place on Friday, May 4 at York Crematorium at 1.30pm.