Thousands of people have lined the streets of Ashington in England's north-east to pay tribute to England World Cup winner Jack Charlton. Charlton, who made 773 appearances for Leeds between 1953 and 1973 and managed the Republic of Ireland to unprecedented heights, died earlier this month at the age of 85. And Ashington came to a standstill as the funeral cortege made its way through the former mining community. Fans wearing Leeds shirts, Newcastle tops, Ireland strips and replica kits from his local side Ashington mingled together, waiting for a chance to pay their final respects to a local hero. Applause and cheers broke out in honour of Charlton, who never forgot his roots and lived in the north-east. Well-wishers threw flowers on the hearse as it passed slowly through the town where he and his younger brother Sir Bobby honed their football skills. A floral tribute from Sir Bobby, 82, and his wife Norma was placed next to the coffin, saying: 'Rest in peace Jack, sending our deepest sympathy', but he was not seen travelling through Ashington. The procession slowed as it passed close to 114 Beatrice Street, where the Charltons played for countless hours in the back lane, and the park where 'Big Jack' learned the art of defending. In Ireland - the country he led to the 1988 European Championship and the 1990 and 1994 World Cups - Charlton was also being remembered. The Football Association of Ireland had called on all Republic fans to wear green in memory of Charlton. Irishman Patrick Wilson was stood in Ashington town centre with his family to pay his respects. The 68-year-old civil engineer, who is originally from Rahugh, Co Westmeath, but now lives in Longframlington, Northumberland, said: "We look at him as a humble person, a man for the people. "He was a simple sort of person with no airs or graces. Everyone was the same in Jack's eyes." Charlton's coffin was draped by England and Republic of Ireland scarves. Floral tributes in the hearse included a football and a red England shirt with 'Jackie 5' on it. The cortege stopped in Ashington and the pallbearer, accompanied by a Northumberland piper, walked in front of the cars for a couple of hundred yards. Former England cricketer Steve Harmison, also from Ashington, was among those paying his respects with all generations present. Australian Associated Press