Danny Fullbrook: loyal, trusted and a true character

BRIAN WOOLNOUGH pays tribute to his Daily Star colleague and friend, Danny Fullbrook, whose death was announced yesterday

Football journalism lost a star and a good friend yesterday.

Danny Fullbrook, chief football writer of the Daily Star, died, aged 40, after an 18-month battle with cancer.

Frank and Fearless, we called him, and that’s how Danny was right to the end.

Danny Fullbrook: “Frank and Fearless”

His attitude to life was always to have fun and none of us who knew him and worked with him will forget his love of entertaining.

Being at the centre of things, holding court, telling us he was right and that we knew nothing.

It didn’t matter whether you were Frank Lampard or a junior reporter, Danny would put you right. A smile, of course, accompanied the banter.

Players and managers liked him because Danny could be trusted, a must-have quality in the cut throat world of football reporting.

He went to Hull University, did his journalism training at college in Preston and joined the Hull Daily Mail, before moving on to the Birmingham Evening Mail.

He had a short spell at the Star as a Midlands football reporter before moving to the Sunday Mirror. Danny returned to the Star as chief football writer in 2000.

He soon made an impact because that is how it always was with this larger than life character. He had a heart of gold and in football journalism that is not easy.

Fulham is in the family blood and Danny proudly carried on the tradition. When you went to Craven Cottage dad Jim and mum Sylvia were not far away.

Sylvia, like Danny, had an opinion and I lost count of the number of times when his phone rang abroad right on deadline. “Mum, I can’t talk about Fulham now,” he would whisper. But he always did.

When he wasn’t working, his 10-year-old son Edward was taken to Craven Cottage as the next in line of Fulham fanatics.

I once sat alongside Danny when Fulham beat Chelsea and he was so excited he could hardly do his match report. “This is one the greatest days of my life,” he said.

That was him. Passionate, fiercely loyal, great company and a true character.

Football will miss him and so will we. Why is it always the good guys?