Sister's tribute to "caring" brother who died at Fratton Park during Pompey game

Alec Lumb, 63, from Gosport, died shortly after Portsmouth kicked off against Middlesbrough on Saturday, January 18. He left behind his partner of 15 years Sharon, as well as his daughters Hannah and Rebecca, and step-daughters Lauren and Shannan.

He was also an elder brother to Ian and Sue. The later paid tribute to Alec, describing him as a devoted Pompey fan and a proud Royal Navy veteran. She said the family had been overwhelmed by the support shown to them - including a fundraiser which has so far amassed more than £8,900.

Alec’s passion for Pompey started at a young age when his dad started taking him to the games at the age of eight, it was a passion that lasted a lifetime. Sue recalled how he learnt how to read by eagerly flicking through the old pink Sports Mail on a Saturday. That enthusiasm has ensured that future generations of the family have caught the Pompey bug, encouraging Sue’s son to be a supporter as well.

Saturday’s game saw Alec attend as usual with his partner Sharon, a fellow Pompey devotee and season ticket holder in the North Stand. As the players came out for kick-off, Sharon noticed that he was slumped forward in his seat. As she had first aid training, Sharon started the CPR as stewards and paramedics were alerted to the situation.

Players close to the half way line, notably Matt Ritchie, brought the referee and medical staff’s attention to the issue. The game was then delayed by 35 minutes as paramedics treated Alec in the stand before being taken to an ambulance outside. The cause of death has not yet been confirmed but the family are assuming it was a heart attack.

While still in shock, the family are taking some comfort in the fact that he was doing something he loved when he died. Shortly before kick-off he had posted on Facebook that he was at the ground and looking forward to the game.

Sue said: “He was in his favourite place when it happened. I saw his post on Facebook that he was at the match and that was probably the last thing he ever wrote. He was so pleased to be there.”

The family have lived in Gosport most of their lives with Alec’s father born and bred in the town. It seemed fitting to Sue that a fellow Gosport man would be the one to star for Pompey after the game resumed, with Matt Ritchie scoring both goals in a 2-1 win.

Sue said: “It was very ironic that the man who got the goals for Portsmouth on Saturday was Matt Ritchie, who is from Gosport himself and went to Bay House School where Alec and myself went.”

Since the news of Alec’s death was confirmed the Pompey family have been out in force to show their support to a fellow fan’s family. A fundraising page was set up with an initial target of £1,000, which it has already smashed. The total at the time of writing is £8,937.

It has been an overwhelming few days for the family but Sue would like to thank all those that have reached out in support. She said: “I would like thank everyone for their lovely comments and support, it has been eye-opening and it’s really appreciated.”

Of course, there was so much more to Alec than just his support of Pompey. Sue works at Navy HQ and went into work Monday so as not to be alone. There were plenty of people still in service that had fond memories of Alec. Sue said: “Loads of people came up to give me hugs, It’s a good job I had a box of tissues on my desk.

“He was very proud of his service. I had a lot of colleagues come to me today who had also worked with him, knew him and were proud of him as well. He touched a lot of people, he was very caring and a lovely person. He would always help people out whenever he could.”

Alec joined the Navy in 1982 and spent 25 years in service with most of his time being spent as a submariner, with his final post as a petty officer writer. Sue has seen a number of messages from submariners paying tribute to Alec after they heard the news.

The fundraising page for Alec’s family can be found at gofundme.com/f/alec-lumb