Heroes pay respects to West Brom's kitman Dave Matthews

Among those paying their respects at St John's Church in Halesowen yesterday were Albion and England legend Bryan Robson, Tony 'Bomber' Brown, current captain Chris Brunt, James Morrison and Jonas Olsson.

Those acting as pallbearers to Mr Matthews, who died aged 67 on April 14, were Cyrille Regis and Brendon Batson, along with former striker Bob Taylor, 70s centre-half duo John Wile and Alistair Robertson, and Paul Raven.

All were keen to pay tribute to the man who served for 51 years with the Baggies. Robson, who started his career with the club in 1972, said: "I knew Dave when I was 13 years old from when I started as a schoolboy.

"Dave was more or less the boss around the place. He was an unbelievable servant for the club. Seeing all the people here today, it just shows what a great kit manager he was. He was one of the best I ever knew in the game. He was always supportive, but if you ever stepped out of line, he would tell you. He was great with people, but he was a great disciplinarian as well."

Mr Matthews died less than a year after retiring. He was in remission after suffering from Non-Hodgkin lymphoma but had been diagnosed with a rare heart condition.

The service included the hymn The Lord's My Shepherd, which Baggies fans famously sing when the team score, and a recital of a poem written by Mr Matthews's father Frank, and read by his daughter Alison.

A private family burial in Stourbridge followed the service, along with a celebration of his life later in the day at The Hawthorns. The flags at the ground were flown at half-mast as a mark of respect.

Former club chaplain and close friend Ken Hipkiss recalled stories of Mr Matthews during his time at West Bromwich Albion.

He said: "It's the stuff legends and books are made of. He spent five decades there, and saw an FA Cup win, League Cup win, and six promotions and relegations. He played for the youth team at West Brom against Mansfield, and when the team travelled away to Mansfield, he was asked to play again.

"He was a brilliant kitman but Dave was much more than any of the statistics.

"In one legendary game, when they played Manchester United and beat them 5-3 he put the 'team spirit' on the bench, and told the players for every goal they scored, they could have a little tot. They celebrated well that day."

Defender Jonas Olsson also paid tribute to the man they called Mr Albion, who was from Hasbury in Halesowen. He said: "Dave was the first guy I met in the club. When I came in for my medical, he was there with my kit. It was always a pleasure working with him. Fifty years in the club, that's something – I feel I've been here forever, and I've only been here five years, so that's something I really respect."

Mr Matthews began working for the Baggies at the age of 15. Among the highlights of his time at the club was the first time the Baggies were promoted to the Premier League, in 2001, under the leadership of Gary Megson.

Fans held a minute's applause in his honour at Albion's home game against Newcastle in the Premier League.