West Brom pay tribute to super fan Les James

The Albion fanatic devoted his life to the Baggies, following the team through thick and thin from the 1940s.

The club has paid tribute to Les who died aged 91, following a short illness.

It was a few years after the Second World War, in 1948, that Les went to his first Albion game and from then on he was hooked.

He was believed to have been the oldest supporter still regularly following the club home and away.

It will be with a tinge of sadness that the new season kicks off in under two weeks' time, with the familiar, friendly face of Les missing from The Hawthorns.

He once told how he was taken ill but signed himself out of hospital so he could watch Albion play Liverpool.

The club said on Twitter: "Rest in peace, Les James. One of our most loved and devoted fans has sadly passed away aged 91.

"He'll be sorely missed by everyone at WBA."

John Homer, from the official supporters club, said: "He was a lovely, lovely man and had lots of friends at the Albion, both fans and the football club.

"He had a home season ticket and travelled away whenever he could.

"He very rarely grumbled about the team and the performance. If there is a classic example of a supporter who gets behind the team through thick and thin, it was him."

Les, who was from Smethwick, was honoured by the club in November 2015 to mark his 90th birthday, when he was invited as a special guest in the Regis Suite where he met some of his heroes from his years supporting Albion, including his all-time hero and record goalscorer Tony ‘Bomber’ Brown.

He was also asked to pick his all-time Baggies XI for the match day programme. He labelled the greats of 1953/54 who nearly won the double as the best Albion team he has ever watched.

But there was also room in his team for more recent players, including current goalkeeper Ben Foster and 90s hero Bob Taylor.