THE FWA is sad to report that one of our most revered members Bob Cass has passed away.

Bob finally succumbed after a long fight against cancer on Thursday November 24th, surrounded by his family.

Bob was a former chairman of the FWA, a life-member and one of the finest journalists in its history, primarily with the Sun and the Mail on Sunday.

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Here is a tribute from his good friend and fellow FWA stalwart Jim Mossop:

To know Robert Stanley Cass was one of life’s privileges.

He was a champion; a true friend of the human race. As a gatherer of football news stories he was unsurpassed. His contacts were from every corner of the football world.  He was a journalist you could trust with your life and people knew that as soon as they met him. The trust was unspoken.

If you saw the words “Exclusive…by Bob Cass” you knew instantly there was true substance in what you were reading. Football folk loved him. He had humour, compassion and knowledge.

You could be playing golf with him in La Manga, Spain, where we had many a happy trip and his mobile would ring. When we told him to switch it off he would tell you that it was Fergie, Harry Redknapp, Sam Allardyce or any one of the old game’s luminaries.

They loved him because they trusted him implicitly and such relationships  were forged long before Google and protective Press Officers got their grip on the game. Bob was ‘old school’ and it worked.

Times spent in his company were magical. He had an amazing memory for jokes and songs. After one convivial night at the Carton House Golf Resort where everyone had a song and a young Scottish journalist played the spoons, Bob was still full of the fun of it on the first tee the following morning and gave us a full solo renditions of Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” at 8am.

Bob was a product of Darlington Grammar School. He joined the local paper, the Northern Echo, which was owned by Westminster Press in London. That’s where I first met him at one of Westminster Press’s twice yearly weekend schools. He was riotous fun then but he was sharpening the skills that made him such an outstanding contributor to The Sun and then Mail on Sunday.

He also an immensely proud family man and loved to have his lovely wife, Janet, and their three children Alison, Jennifer and Simon, around him at Christmas and holiday times. He was proud of their achievements.They were with him when he died at his home in Durham, ravaged by the cancer that he had fought so hard to try to defeat.

There was no edge to Bob. I recall inviting him to my house when he was in the Altrincham area and we were having barbecued salmon with a mango salsa. The salsa intrigued him at first and then he said, as only Bob could: “Do you know, my grandad wouldn’t go to work without his mango salsa.”

When he wasn’t working, which was rare, he loved to play golf at Durham City Golf Club where he was captain a few years ago. He was a determined golfer with intense levels of concentration. Then, at the 19th hole, he was the embodiment of relaxation.

All the time, his mind would be ticking over with thoughts of future stories,  He had a couple of spats with Sir Alex Ferguson but they were soon resolved. They had a mutual respect for each other.

We will miss him, hacks and football people alike. It may sound trite to say there will ever be another Bob Cass. It’s not. Bob’s name will always stand revered inside and outside of the beautiful game.”

Pat Signy’s funeral will be held at the South Chapel, Hendon Crematorium at11am this Thursday (18th) with the wake later at Hendon Hall Hotel, which held so many happy memories for both Pat and Dennis Signy. All friends and FWA members welcome. The Signys’ daughter Claire has asked if you can let her know if you will be attending so they have an idea of numbers. She is on 07713 388453 or claire.signy@gmail.com
The family have requested no flowers but donations to charity (to be decided)