A FORMER Saints star born and bred in Southampton who captained England's schoolboys as a youngster has died.

Harry Lanham signed for the side from Norwich in the late 1930s, around the same period the club legend Ted Bates also joined.

He became a Saint shortly before the outbreak of Second World War, and served in Dunkirk, and retired from the game a few years after the end of the conflict.

In his later years, the defender ran an antiques shop in Old Northam Road in Southampton for around 20 years and was also a keen cricketer.

He was an umpire for Green Jackets cricket team in Winchester and was a scorer at matches before calling it a day at the ripe age of 80.

His family lived in the city's Bevois Valley area for more than 100 years and he was a pupil at Bevois Town Primary School.

During his early playing days he won a handful of caps for England schoolboys, and captained the side.

Mr Lanham, of Harlyn Road, Millbrook, died at Southampton General Hospital last week, aged 85.

After leaving the Saints, he played for Newport on the Isle of Wight and later became manager for Totton Football Club.

His only child Venessa Haines, 57, from Weston, said: "He was very outgoing and was a friendly person.

"Ted Bates once offered him a scouting type of job at Southampton, and he sometimes said that he wished he had taken him up on the offer."

A funeral service will take place on September 26 in the East Chapel of Southampton Crematorium at 1.30pm.