There’s only one Bobby Robson,

Ahead of Sir Bobby Robson Day today, East Anglian Daily Times editor-in-chief Terry Hunt pays his own tribute to the great man

WHY do we love Sir Bobby Robson so much?

The easy answer is that he made dreams come true for so many football fans, whether they were supporters of Ipswich Town, Newcastle United, or a host of big-name European clubs.

Pretty much wherever he went, success and silverware followed. If you look at his CV, it makes impressive reading. On the international stage, he came so close to reaching the World Cup Final with England in 1990.

But the affection which just about everyone has for Sir Bobby goes way beyond footballing success. We can all point to managers who have won many more cups and league championships. We respect them, but we don’t love them.

The difference with Sir Bobby was his wonderful, warm personality. Whoever you were, whatever you wanted, he always had time for you. There are many stories of how willingly Sir Bobby gave of his time. His secretary at Ipswich Town, Pat Godbold, says she had to be very strict with him, to stop him agreeing to requests which would have taken him out to supporters’ events every night of the week.

I had good reason to be grateful to Sir Bobby’s generosity of spirit. In 1992, Ipswich had won the Second Division championship, to take their place in the new Premier League.

We were planning a supplement, and I had the job of getting some quotes from