"Remembering Dylan Tombides: The Inspiring Legacy of West Ham's Young Star That Continues to Change Lives"

OVER a decade after his tragic passing from testicular cancer, West Ham starlet Dylan Tombides is still changing lives.

The academy youngster was just 20 and on the verge of breaking into the first team at when he lost his battle with the disease in 2014.

Dylan Tombides was a bright star in West Ham’s academy before he died of testicular cancer aged just 20 in 2014Credit: Action Images – Reuters Dylan’s mother Tracy formed the DT38 Foundation in his memory to raise awareness of the diseaseCredit: Refer to source

It was a loss that sent shockwaves through the club, but his legacy continues to inspire, educate and save lives through the work of the DT38 Foundation, headed by Dylan’s mother, Tracy.

The foundation, which hosts events and workshops to raise awareness for testicular cancer, is now teaming up with West Ham and apparel brand OddBalls to create a new colourful underwear line.

DT38 will receive 10 per cent of all net sales from the claret and blue themed line, to go towards their important work.

Tracy and Dylan’s former team-mates Carlton Cole and Matt Jarvis spoke to SunSport about Dylan, his journey, and how his life has left a mark on communities across the globe.

Dylan continued to train hard and try to work his way into the first team during his treatmentCredit: Action Images – Reuters

Born in Australia, Dylan Tombides picked up at an early age alongside his younger brother Taylor.

The family would move to Macau in Dylan’s early teens, where he would begin to attract the attention of professional football clubs.

After Tracy met with a West Ham scout in Perth, 15-year-old Dylan was invited to trial with the U18s, several age groups above his own, and impressed enough to earn himself a spot in the academy.

It took just two years for the forward to work his way through the ranks and reach his first Premier League squad, being included on the bench for West Ham’s 2010/11 season-closer against .

But it was around this time that Dylan had noticed a lump on his testicle, and decided with his mum to seek medical advice.

Tracy told SunSport: “Dylan didn’t want to see the doctors at West Ham because he didn’t want to take their focus away from football, so he said ‘I’ll go to the GP.’

“The GP told Dylan it was just a cyst and people live with cysts all the time.

“In hindsight I should have gone ‘no I’ll get a second opinion,’ but I didn’t. I was absolutely thrilled with that diagnosis.

“He went out to Mexico for the [U17] World Cup, and it was there that he was pulled for a random drug test that said to him, ‘you’ve either taken a banned substance or you have a tumour.’

“I got in touch with the doctors at West Ham and they put the next steps in place.

“He came back on Thursday, he was having a scan on Friday that diagnosed him with testicular cancer, on Monday he had his testicle removed and by the weekend he was starting his chemotherapy treatment.”

Over the following months, Dylan would battle through his treatment while continuing to train with the first team whenever his condition allowed.

“As a mum, I’ve always tried to look at the positives,” said Tracy. “I told Dylan, I believe you’re going to be a cancer patient for a very short time, but you’ll be a professional athlete for a long, long time.

“Deal with the treatment when you have to, deal with the side effects when you have to, but just focus on staying as a professional athlete.”

And that is what he did, stunning his team-mates with his resilience and determination in the face of such a harrowing situation.

Among those team-mates was fellow striker and West Ham cult hero Carlton Cole, who told SunSport: “It took everyone by surprise.

As a fellow forward, Carlton Cole had one eye on Dylan as he rose through the ranks at the clubCredit: Getty Matt Jarvis joined the club during Dylan’s fight, both he and Cole remain DT38 ambassadorsCredit: West Ham United

“We didn’t know what to do, we’d never had anything like this among our ranks before.

“It was a difficult situation, especially for someone so young, but the boy just kept on going. He kept on wanting to play, kept on wanting to strive for success.”

New signing Matt Jarvis arrived from Wolves in the summer of 2012 and recounted that Dylan’s persistently bubbly personality made it hard to tell what he was fighting through.

He said: “Dylan was going through treatment at the time so I didn’t see him, and then I saw him for a few weeks and I’d ask ‘who’s Dylan, what’s he doing?’

“Then I got filled in on all of the information of everything that he was going through, but also what he’d done already, and how he’d achieved it, and what he was like as a person.

“I only ever saw him smiling, so I had no idea, because you just wouldn’t have known.”

Just over a year on from his diagnosis, Dylan would make his first team debut, coming off the bench at Upton Park in the in late September 2012.

The outgoing striker once celebrated a late winner by holding up a heartfelt message to his mumCredit: West Ham UNITED Dylan made his first team debut as a teenager, but his illness hampered his developmentCredit: Action Images – Reuters

But his health would take a heartbreaking turn for the worse later that year, further stunting his career.

Dylan rallied through his heavy treatments to play another tournament for his nation at the AFC U22 Championship in January 2014, but would tragically lose his battle with the disease on April 18th.

The club honoured him the following day against , with Dylan’s father and brother laying his No38 shirt on the centre spot, alongside the announcement that the club would be retiring the shirt number, an honour only previously given to legendary West Ham captain .

But Tracy was determined to go further, and to follow in her son’s footsteps by fighting through her pain to improve the lives of those around her.

She recalled: “We took Dylan home to Perth to have his service with his family, and it was at his wake that his close friends, his best friends, his -back there said to me, ‘Trace, we have no idea what Dylan went through.’

“‘We don’t know the signs, we don’t know the symptoms. We don’t know anything about what Dylan suffered.’ And it was that moment of clarity that I went, ‘now I know, that’s my purpose.’

“When people say to me, ‘I don’t know how you do it,’ I say Dylan had every right to stay curled up in bed, and he didn’t. So I’m definitely not going to.”

The DT38 Foundation was set up the following year with the help of West Ham, who continue to support the organisation.

The foundation counts club figures such as Cole and Jarvis among their ambassadors, and Tracy maintains a strong relationship with West Ham vice-chair .

West Ham have teamed up with OddBalls to raise money for DT38 with a colourful underwear lineCredit: West Ham UNITED Ten per cent of all net sales will be donated to DT38’s important workCredit: West Ham UNITED

Tracy said of the OddBalls launch: “DT38 continue to recognise the strong support from West Ham United with their upcoming collaboration with OddBalls.

“By receiving ten per cent of the revenue from sales of this collaboration, we are able to steadily increase our demand for resources that go hand in hand when we partner in the community to educate and raise awareness of testicular cancer.”

West Ham United OddBalls underwear can be purchased by visiting: https://www.myoddballs.com/collections/west-ham-united