Bill Shorthouse, who died on 6, September, 2008, aged 86, was a defender whose presence at the heart of the Wolves defence for a decade earned him the nickname 'The Baron'.

Shorthouse, who made 376 appearances in his 10 years at Molineux, was a key figure during the club's most successful period, helping them win the League Championship and FA Cup.

He was ever-present during the successful cup campaign of 1949 and missed only two games of the championship-winning 1953/54 season.

After retiring in 1956 he became a respected coach, helping develop the young footballers of the Midlands at Aston Villa and Birmingham, as well as the England youth team.

He was born in Bilston on the outskirts of Wolverhampton on 27 May, 1922. During the Second World War he served in the army and was wounded in the D-Day landings.

Beginning his professional footballing career at 25, he played alongside fellow legend Billy Wright in defence and also served as his vice-captain. He was known to fans for his brave defending and to team-mates for his great spirit. When they won the FA Cup in 1949, he and goalkeeper Bert Williams took the trophy to the school they had both attended.

After hanging up his boots he joined his former manager Stan Cullis at Birmingham as a coach and shared the caretaker manager role with chief scout Don Dorman after Cullis's retirement in 1970. In 1980 he guided Aston Villa to the FA Youth Cup.

He spent the remainder of his life in Wolverhampton and was very active within the Wolves Former Players Association. He died in a nursing home after suffering from dementia. He was survived by his wife Betty, two sons, Paul and Nigel, four grandchildren and one great-grandson.

Flags at Molineux flew at half mast and his Wolves team-mates were quick to pay tribute to him. Striker Roy Swinbourne said: "My deep friendship with Bill has been a very long one. From the age of 16 when I came to Wolves from Yorkshire, he took me under his wing and helped me to settle in at Wolverhampton."

Former Wolves keeper and chairman of the Wolves Former Players Association, Malcolm Finlayson, said: "Bill was a true hero for his country during the Normandy D-day landings in the Second World War. His courage was also reflected in the way he played for Wolves. He was a much-admired defender and his tackling was uncompromising."

Bert Williams said Mr Shorthouse was "straight-forward with no frills, but very hard and gave everything he'd got for the Wolves".

He added: "He should have played for England."