‘A true trailblazer’: David ‘Syd’ Lawrence, former England cricketer, dies aged 61

David Lawrence, pictured in April 1998 at the County Ground in Bristol where he represented Gloucestershire. Photograph: Gary M Prior/Getty Images

Colleagues and former teammates of David “Syd” Lawrence have paid tribute to the former Gloucestershire and England fast bowler after he died on Saturday of motor neurone disease.

Phil Tufnell described Lawrence as “a great man and a great friend” and Richard Thompson, the England and Wales Cricket Board chair, called him “a true trailblazer and a man of immense courage, character and compassion”.