The rugby league family paid their last respects to former Great Britain international Terry Newton at his funeral in Wigan.
Moving tributes to former Great Britain international
The rugby league family paid their last respects to former Great Britain international Terry Newton at his funeral in Wigan.
Team-mates of the former Leeds, Wigan, Bradford and Wakefield hooker, who took his own life 12 days ago at the age of 31, were among the 1,000-plus mourners who attended Wigan Parish Church.
Warrington forward Adrian Morley, the newly-appointed England captain for the Four Nations Series, was among the pall-bearers, along with Newton's former team-mate Gareth Hock and ex-Wigan and Great Britain forwards Terry O'Connor and Barrie McDermott.
Another former Wigan team-mate, Brian Carney, delivered a moving tribute, including a letter written to Newton by parents Val and Tony in which he was described as "any parents' dream son".
His voice cracking with emotion, Carney said: "We are all united in respect and sadness for you Tez, you left too soon.
"Every one of your friends will have a treasured memory, that is your gift to us."
Among those in the 600-strong congregation inside the church was Bev Risman, the present of the Rugby Football League, and former Wigan chairman and RFL chief executive Maurice Lindsay.
Former internationals Andy Gregory, Garry Schofield and Bill Ashurst mixed with current players, including Wigan captain Sean O'Loughlin, to pay their own tributes.
Former Wigan captain and coach Graeme West was another mourner, along with former Wigan and Great Britain coach Brian Noble, more recent internationals Sean Long, Paul Sculthorpe and Martin Gleeson and current players from Bradford, Salford, St Helens, Warrington, Hull and Huddersfield.
Earlier, hundreds of fans lined up outside Wigan's DW Stadium to witness the coffin pass by and the funeral service was relayed to hundreds more waiting outside the church.
The funeral was followed by a private burial for close family and friends, at St John's Church of England church in Pemberton, Wigan.
A full inquest into Newton's death, on September 26, will be held later this year.
