It was with great sadness that we learned of the death of Fred Webb, who died after a short illness on Christmas Eve.
Fred was a pioneer in our work with stable staff.
He began in the early 70’s acting as a sports co-ordinator for the Stable Lads Welfare Trust. This work took him all over the country in particular with the setting up of the National Stable Lads football competition-known to all as the Vernon’s Cup. Being sports minded as Fred was, this football competition became Fred’s passion and his nightmare!!
He spent many many hours travelling here there and everywhere, often with Marion and the children in tow organising these inter area games and then organising the final at a neutral venue. In later years it became his nightmare for the advent of Sunday racing reduced the participants and free week-ends until the event became a challenge tournament but year in year out he soldiered on making sure the game continued
Over the years Fred took several stable lads football teams to France and Ireland and colleague Mike Filby tells the tale when he and Fred took a team to France 1982/3 Fred had to calm down several agitated/mouthy players as soon as they got on the ferry at Dover by using all his football league refereeing experience gained when dealing with equally mouthy professional footballers. It was almost Mutiny on the Ferry’ but help was at hand for by the nature of the crossing because Fred had no need to caution them further due to sea-sickness taking its toll before they had even left the harbour!!
Later in that tour Fred changed his role from ‘Policeman’ to that family planning advisor when hearing of the intended visits of the players to the night clubs of gay Paree.
Such is the varied work of a welfare officer to stable staff!!
Apart from football Fred organised the annual cricket match in Arundel Park due to no doubt to John Dunlop’s influence with the Duke of Norfolk–how lucky we all were to enjoy playing in such superb surroundings This tournament has been going for nearly thirty years and the success of this event is entirely down to Fred’s commitment to it.
All sports came alike to Fred. 5-a-side football at nearby Uffington, Golf at Lingfield and Fishing near Peterborough were all organised and run by Fred and it must be stressed that all these events were up and running whilst he was still working for the Pru-such was his commitment to the life of stable staff.
He didn’t become full time with the SLWT until 1989 then worked full time until 1999 when he officially retired then worked just as hard keeping all these events going.
He worked tirelessly on the other aspect of the Trust’s work that is looking after the sick, injured and elderly. Trips out to the seaside or the races for the retired staff also became a feature of his work here in the south of England If he felt an injustice had been done in any shape or form to an injured lad or girl or someone who had given a lifetime to the industry Fred was like to dog with a bone. He was very reluctant to give up fighting for the cause until he got a satisfactory answer to the problem.
I swapped many a chat with Fred over the years trying to right the worries for whatever reason that staff had ..advising each other as to how to handle and solve the problems.
Sadly the days have now gone when ringing Fred up the phone would be answered by the words ‘Webb here’ Another of his little idiosyncrasies was when he always referred to colleague Ron.Wallwork as Ron Wallwick he’d only known him since 1976
A theory abounds that anyone can be tracked down anywhere in the world by asking just six people---somebody somewhere knows of someone in the area and so on and so on ….Wherever English staff work in the world of racing be it in Dubai, Hong Kong, Australia, the States I’ll bet there will be someone there who will know of Fred and his involvement with stable staff. If you had six British lads riding out in remotest Papa New Guinea you could bet your last pound that one of them would have had some contact with Fred
For example on Monday of this week, Paul ‘Barney’ Bamford, who many of you will know here in the Lambourn area rang me and I just mentioned that I was attending Fred’s funeral today and Barney spontaneously remarked ‘I know Fred-he organised football’ and where-ever staff ride racehorses someone will say-‘ he organised fishing’ or ‘ I attended his golf days at Lingfield’.
He certainly made his mark in the welfare and recreation of stable staff.
When you look at Fred’s contribution over the past sixty years or so it shows what a great guy he was. Fifty years service to football recently acknowledged by Suffolk FA Forty years to stable staff also acknowledged recently when presented to The Princess Royal in London,,, thirty years to the Pru and just for good measure his three years National Service in the RAF- looking after you and me
No doubt Marion will say she has spent well over fifty years looking after him!!!
Sad to say that Lambourn has lost two of its most respected citizens now in the past couple of years. Fred’s successor Brian Holmes sadly died nearly two years ago and now with Fred’s passing the knowledge and experience these two stalwarts had acquired has gone with them.
I am sure that the skills that Rowan and Sarah possess and helped of course by Doreen Rackham they will ensure that the good work that Fred and Brian did will continue here in Lambourn for many years under their stewardship.
More than anything else Fred was immensely proud of his family. He and Marion had celebrated their golden wedding three years ago and nothing made him more proud than the four children they had brought into the world nurtured and loved to become part of one big family.
Conversely in return Racing and stable staff in particular should also be proud and grateful for his remarkable contribution to their cause.
