BBC SPORT | WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS | Football's tribute to Master of Molineux

Tributes have been pouring in for the Master of Molineux, Stan Cullis, who died on Wednesday.

A Wolves man through and through, Cullis shone for club and country either side of the Second World War.

This is a great loss - not just for Wolves but the whole of football

Wolves boss Dave Jones

But for the war, he would almost certainly have doubled his tally of 170 Wolves appearances and 12 caps for his country.

As Wolves manager, Cullis guided the club to three League Championships and negotiated three European Cup campaigns.

Current Wolves boss Dave Jones said: "When you consider what Stan did for this club and the community, this is a great loss.

"And not just for Wolves, but for the whole of football. He was a great man - a giant within the game."

Current boss Dave Jones led the tributes

Wolves' legendary goalkeeper Bert Williams felt Cullis' approach to the game was a basic yet effective one.

"His philosophy on football was simple - you had to score more goals than your opponents," said former England international Williams, who played over 400 games for Wolves between 1945 and 1959.

"He did not complicate us with set pieces or different formations, you just went out there and played your own game.

"He would always say: 'Let our opponents worry about us'.

"Things have got too complicated in football today."

Williams added: "Stan Cullis was absolutely dedicated to football generally and to Wolves particularly. It's a sad day for football."

Wolves chairman Sir Jack Hayward paid his tribute to Cullis, saying: "I am deeply grieved to hear this news and my condolences go to Stan's family.

Bert Williams
Williams admired Cullis' simple approach

"Stan was, without doubt, one of the all-time managerial greats in British football, and a great player for Wolves and England.

"I feel that he never got the full recognition he deserved, which is why I announced recently that the club would erect a statue of Stan outside Molineux to remind everyone of his great achievements.

"What pleases me most was that his children, Susan and Andrew, were able to tell Stan what we had planned and, despite his illness, he was able to appreciate the tribute we wanted to make to him.

"His death is a great loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers."

Former England manager Sir Walter Winterbottom said Cullis deserved to be compared with legendary Manchester United boss Sir Matt Busby.

"He and Sir Matt were the two predominant figures of their age," Winterbottom said.

"Stan was a great hero for Wolves and a hard act to follow.

"He had a reputation as a strict disciplinarian but at heart he was a big softie."

The team Stan Cullis moulded under the captaincy of the great Billy Wright made Wolves the most famous club in the world during the 1950s

WFPA secretary Peter Creed

Peter Creed, honorary secretary of the Wolves Former Players Association, added to the tributes to arguably the West Midlands club's greatest servant.

"He was truly a great man," Creed said.

"He was outstanding as a centre-half and captain for Wolves and England.

"Then he became Wolves' most successful manager by building and improving on the sound foundations Major Frank Buckley had created in the 1930s and 40s.

"The team Stan Cullis moulded under the captaincy of the great Billy Wright made Wolves the most famous club in the world during the 1950s."

Great servant

The Football Association also paid a warm tribute, describing Cullis as a "real legend in the history of English football".

FA spokesman Adrian Bevington said: "Everyone at the FA is extremely saddened to hear the news of Stan Cullis' passing.

"Stan was a great servant to the game and obviously one of the finest club managers this country has ever produced.

"Whenever Wolverhampton Wanderers is mentioned to this day, Stan Cullis is always closely associated with the club due to his immense service and success there."

A minute's silence will be observed before England's friendly with Spain at Villa Park.

Sven Goran Eriksson's side will also wear black armbands as a mark of respect to Cullis, as well as those killed in the Selby rail crash.


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