TRIBUTES have been paid to a popular man who was involved with the Royal British Legion and Winchester Rugby Club.

Stanley Albert Judd, who recently died at the age of 92, moved to Winchester in the 1980s after he lived and worked in London.

“Stan the man” was a member of the Royal British Legion, where he had been the vice chairman of the Winchester branch.

In 2013, Stan’s daughter Jo took him to Winchester Rugby Club where he became heavily involved in the social side, selling match programmes and shouting his support from the touchline at home matches.

At Winchester’s most recent game, they held a minute’s silence and they gave a tribute at the club’s lunch last weekend.

More recently, Stan was one of the first people in Winchester to receive a Covid vaccination, in December last year.

Tim Fell from Winchester Rugby Club described Stan as a “genuine character”.

In a tribute to his father, Stan’s son Graham Judd said: “Dad was born in Hackney, East London into a river/canal family of Lightermen and Bargemen on the River Lea and Thames.

“The family moved closer to the Royal Docks during WW2 to acquire a home in East Ham, near to West Ham football ground at Upton Park.

“At 14, in 1943, Stanley was a Royal Docks Post Office messenger boy on his bicycle avoiding the Luftwaffe bombardment of the enclosed docks.

“He started his Lightermen apprenticeship as a cabin boy on the Thames steam tug “Framfield” at 15, eventually becoming a Freeman of the River Thames.

“Two and a half years of national service spent in Cyprus, Egypt and Palestine were undertaken between 1947 and 1949.

“He returned to life afloat on the Thames and River Lea Canal in late 1949.

“In 1956, East End boy wed West End girl, Betty Louise Caleno and three children were born (Graham, Lesley and Joanne).

“The closure of the London Docks due to containerisation in the late 70’s brought about a huge downturn in river freight and requirement for Lighterage, so that Dad took the offer of severance and with it, bought the house in Badger Farm in 1980.

“Until his retirement he worked as a coach driver with Taylor’s of Sutton Scotney and loved this second occupation.”