A young father who died after a road accident will be remembered for his 'infectious smile' and the twinkle in his eye, his friends said yesterday.

Sam Crisp, 21, suffered fatal head injuries when his bike collided with a car on Sprowston Road during Thursday's evening rush hour, just yards from his house in Templemere.

The scene of the accident had yesterday became a memorial to the father-of-one, as his mother, stepfather and friends left flowers and tributes to him.

Social networking sites have since been flooded with messages of condolence, and his friends were due to meet last night at Eaton Park in his memory.

Dan Watson, one of those who came to pay his respects, had been friends with Mr Crisp since childhood and was planning to go on holiday with him to Spain in the summer.

He said: 'He was just a great guy to be around – the best friend you could ask for: always trusting, always reliable, and such a laugh.

'It still hasn't sunk in yet. I was speaking to him at 3pm that day; we had big plans for Saturday because it's my birthday. It's just such a shock.'

He described Mr Crisp, a former Hewett School pupil who worked at the Menzies warehouse in the west of Norwich, as a loving father and a Norwich City fan whose passion was socialising with his friends.

'His little boy will be lost without his dad. Sam loved him so much and was a really good dad,' said Mr Watson, 21, of Dowding Road, Old Catton.

'He was always up for a laugh – he was very popular and well known, funny and easy to get along with.'

Mr Crisp had moved into a house in Templemere with his mother just the previous week, but he and Mr Watson had discussed sharing a house.

'He'd only lived up there for a week: he wouldn't usually have been on the road where it happened,' he said.

'We had been looking into getting a place together, because both of us were in the same situation and looking at moving out.'

Police and paramedics were called to the collision at 5.15pm on Thursday, close to the traffic lights near Templemere, involving Mr Crisp and a white Vauxhall Corsa.

He was treated at the scene before being taken to Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, but died on Thursday evening.

Norfolk coroner William Armstrong yesterday opened and adjourned an inquest into Mr Crisp's death.

Police have appealed for witnesses to the collision, and anyone with information should contact police on 101.