Tributes following the death of Blackpool-born England rugby union star

Hesford passed away, aged 72, having won 10 caps for England between 1981 and 1985, as well as tasting cup success with Bristol and featuring in two County Championship title wins for Gloucestershire.

Educated at Arnold School, Hesford also featured for Fleetwood RUFC and played a handful of games with Fylde.

After graduating from university, he taught in London and played for Wasps before moving to Zambia for three years.

Upon returning, he settled in Bristol and made his debut for them in 1978, retiring seven years later after captaining England in a match against Otago on their tour of New Zealand.

He also made five appearances for the Barbarians, in addition to a spell coaching Bristol in the late 1980s.

Beaumont was England captain when Hesford made his debut as a replacement against Scotland in the 1981 Calcutta Cup meeting at Twickenham.

He told Fylde’s website: “This is very sad news indeed. Bob was a splendid lad.

“Whilst he only played a couple of games for Fylde before moving on to Wasps and Bristol, he and his family had a great sporting legacy.

“He was a top bloke, a good player and he had a fantastic sense of fun and good humour. He will be much missed.”

Hesford came from a sporting family with his father, Bob senior, having been a goalkeeper with Huddersfield Town.

He made more than 200 appearances for the club, featuring in their 1938 FA Cup final loss to Preston North End.

One of his brothers, Iain, also played professional football as a keeper for Blackpool, Sunderland and Hull City among others.

Another brother, Steve, started as a goalkeeper with Fleetwood FC before turning to rugby league, playing for Warrington and Huddersfield.

A Bristol Bears statement added: “Bob Hesford will be remembered as one of Bristol’s all-time great forwards.

“He was a great raconteur with a wonderful sense of humour, and he will be much missed in the local rugby community.

“All at Bristol Bears send their sincere sympathy to Bob’s family at this sad time.”