PNE legend Mark Lawrenson pays emotional tribute to his late mother Theresa

Lawrenson paid tribute to his mother, Theresa.

Former Republic of Ireland and PNE defender Mark Lawrenson has made a tribute to his late mother on social media.

Preston-born Lawrenson took to Twitter to say goodbye to his mum Theresa, who has died last week aged 84.

Following the funeral on Friday, the football pundit said: "We said farewell to our beloved Mum/Grandma."

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"We only have one mother and they are our mentors in so many ways.

"Not sure I told you enough times how much I loved you".

In an interview for The Independent in 2009 Lawrenson revealed that his mother had once hoped he might be ordained as a priest, but he followed in his father's footsteps instead, making his Deepdale debut in 1974 aged 17.

Lawrenson's father, Thomas, had played as a winger for Preston North End alongside the legendary Sir Tom Finney in the 1950s.

“My mum and dad were very proud of what I did in my career," he told the Post in 2015, "but of course I owe a lot to them, and I wouldn’t be where I am now without them.

“When I was a kid my mum use to drive me everywhere, she was our taxi driver who drove me to play in all sort of games, in all sorts of different places".