A STALWART of Gloucestershire's fencing trade – who once battled it out with a snooker legend on the baize – has died at the age of 81.

Bill Kotwica, lost his battle with lung cancer and died at home on Christmas Day.

Now, Brockworth man Bill's eldest son Joe, 53, has paid tribute to his "fantastic" father.

He said: "He was a very generous person.

"He was such a loving person, anyone could approach him and he was so well respected."

Bill played extensively in both the Gloucester Skittles League and Gloucester Snooker League and played snooker world champion Steve Davis in the early 1980s.

He lived in Poland as a child but at the age of 10, he fled the country through Russia and Siberia and, after spending some time in Italy, he settled in Britain in 1946.

He married his Welsh wife Anne in 1955 and Joe was born 11 months later.

Although he started his working life at the Gloucester Shipyard and Wingate, he eventually turned his expertise to fencing and started his own business in the city.

Bill is survived by his other three sons Karol, 50, Peter, 45 and Stefan, 39.

He was also a loving grandfather to 10 grandchildren and had five great-grandchildren.

His funeral service will be held at 10.30am today at St Patrick's Church in Brockworth, followed by a burial at St George's Church from 11.45am.