Sir Jack Hayward stand named at Wolverhampton Wanderers

Sir Jack Hayward was passionate that Wolves' stadium kept its Molineux name

A stand at Wolverhampton Wanderers' Molineux Stadium has been renamed after former owner Sir Jack Hayward.

The businessman and philanthropist died in January, aged 91, and thousands of people lined the streets of Wolverhampton to pay tribute.

A boyhood fan, he bought the club in 1990, spending £70m of his own money before selling up in 2007.

The South Bank was officially named after Sir Jack in a ceremony before Sunday's match against Hull.

His son, Jonathan Hayward, was also presented with a book of condolence on the pitch.

Hundreds watched Sir Jack's funeral on a big screen

Hundreds of fans gathered in Queen Square in February to watch Sir Jack's Funeral, while several roads through the city were closed off.

The club announced proposals to rename the stand in May and there are also plans to build a statue of him in the city centre.

During his life, Sir Jack was a strong supporter of keeping Molineux's historical name and was unconvinced his name should be used.

He once said: "If anything in the stadium has to bear my name, how about the Hayward loos?"

From the scene

Mike Taylor, BBC WM Sport

The brief ceremony before Sunday's match was ultimately a lasting tribute from Wolverhampton to one of their own.

Even though he lived much of his life in exotic locations, he was basically a Wolverhampton boy and that's how the fans saw him.

He funded the redevelopment of Molineux in the 1990s and turned around the club's fortunes.

The South Bank was previously named after another chairman, Jack Harris, but renaming it after Sir Jack Hayward seems to be a popular move among fans.

It is usually home to some of Wolves' noisiest supporters and I saw at least one banner at the Hull match which read "RIP Sir Jack".