West Ham United were saddened to learn of the death of prolific forward Tommy Dixon at the age of 84.
Dixon played for West Ham United between 1952 and 1955, scoring an impressive 25 goals in just 44 appearances in all competitions.
Signed from Newcastle United at the age of 23 in 1952, Dixon made his debut in a 3-2 Essex Professional Cup win over Colchester United at Layer Road on 13 November 1952.
The forward had to wait until 4 April 1953 to make his league debut, doing so in a 4-1 Division Two defeat at Swansea Town - now Swansea City.
Dixon's first goals in a Claret and Blue shirt arrived in his third game two days later, when he netted twice in a 3-2 Division Two win over Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Further strikes at Sheffield United and at home to Barnsley meant the Newcastle-upon-Tyne born player finished his first season at the Boleyn Ground with four goals in seven appearances.
The 1953/54 season was Dixon's best in a West Ham shirt, with the centre forward finishing as the Club's leading scorer with 19 goals, including 17 in 29 Division Two appearances.
The highlight of a memorable season came against Swansea on 14 September 1953, when he scored a hat-trick in a home 4-2 Division Two victory.
Dixon did not restrict his goalscoring exploits to the league, however, bagging two goals in three FA Cup appearances, including one in the 1-1 fourth-round draw with holders Blackpool in front of 37,000 fans at the Boleyn Ground.
Despite his prolific form in 1953/54, Dixon featured just four times the following season as John Dick and Dave Sexton were preferred in the forward positions.
Dixon's final appearance for West Ham came on Christmas Day 1954, when the Hammers scored a home 1-0 Division Two win over Derby County.
In March of the following year, he departed east London to join Division Three South side Reading. There, he found the net regularly again, scoring 64 goals in 123 league appearances over four seasons.
He later played for Brighton and Hove Albion alongside Sexton before returning north with Cumbrian sides Workington and Barrow and retiring at the age of 34 in 1964. He passed away at the age of 84 on 6 February 2014.
West Ham United would like to pass on their sincere condolences to Tommy's family and friends at this sad time.