A FORMER footballer, who once tackled Sir Tom Finney in a friendly match, knocked presents on the head in favour of raising cash to mark his 80th birthday.

Instead of buying expensive gifts Robert Salisbury, of The Grove, Penwortham, asked family and friends to give him birthday cash on Sunday, March 17 -- which he donated to a local branch of Cancer Research UK.

And the charity champ's pals helped him raise £800 for the good cause -- the biggest birthday lump sum the charity has ever received.

Robert's wife died of the disease 16 years ago and his partner, ballroom dance teacher Leah Hobkirk, lost her husband Wallis to cancer too.

Robert said: "I thought, what do you buy a bloke who's 80 years old, apart from brandy and whisky? I ended up with £800 in donations and enough booze to last until I'm 90!"

Robert, who has been a decorator most of his life, was a keen footballer in his youth and played during the Second World War in Italy and North Africa.

"I played football with Tom Finney in the army," Robert said. "In my teens I was chased by a lot of clubs. I signed with Bolton Wanderers as an amateur and was asked to play in a first team match, but I was in bed with the flu! I wish I hadn't been ill but that's the way life goes. I did play for Fleetwood though!"

And Robert believes the sport has helped him live a long life despite cheating death on at one occasion. He said: "In the war I was a wireless operator in a tank and my friend Sam was the gunner. It was on D-Day just outside Rome. In those days everyone was trained to do all the jobs. Sam asked me if I wanted to swap over and I took Sam's seat. Later on in the afternoon Sam got killed and I ended up in hospital."

Maureen Newsham, of the Cancer Research UK Lytham St Annes committee said: "We were pleased. It was the biggest birthday donation we've ever had. It will go with the money that we raised this year and then to research. All the money we raise is kept in the North West for people here."