West Ham women’s team paid tribute to the late Dylan Tombides during their tour of Western Australia.
Tombides, a former Australian national youth team player, came through the Hammers’ youth ranks after moving to London with his family in 2009 at the age of 15.
Thanks to an excellent goalscoring record and a superb all-round game, the striker quickly rose through the ranks, being named in the Premier League matchday squad at the age of 17 and making his debut in an EFL Cup match at the Boleyn Ground at the age of 18.
Tombides was tragically diagnosed with testicular cancer while representing his country at the 2011 FIFA U17 World Cup. Despite his courage and being given the all-clear at one point, Tombides passed away in April 2014 at the age of 20.
Following his death, Tombides’ number 38 shirt was retired by the club, an honour previously reserved for the late, great Bobby Moore, who was also diagnosed with testicular cancer as a young man.
Tombides’ family set up the DT38 Foundation in his honour in February 2015 and the West Ham men’s team showed their support for the charity during their tour of Perth, Tombides’ hometown, in the summer of 2023.
A year later, Rehanne Skinner’s team similarly honoured the former striker’s legacy during their own tour Down Under.
West Ham women paid tribute to Dylan Tombides during their trip to Australia
The former Socceroos and West Ham star died of testicular cancer 10 years ago
Players wore DT38 awareness shirts during their first training session in the city on Monday. They interacted with supporters during the meet-and-greet session at Macedonia Park, home of Stirling Lions, a youth team Tombides previously played for.
The DT38 logo will also feature on the back of the players’ match shirts for both Perth International Football Cup matches: against Paris Saint-Germain on Thursday and against either Manchester City or Leicester City on Sunday. Both matches will be played at HBF Park.
Before kick-off against PSG, a 30-second trailer for a new documentary about Tombides, produced by DT38 and Premier League Productions, will be shown on the big screens. The trailer aims to provide as many people as possible with knowledge to fight testicular cancer.
On Wednesday, four members of West Ham’s women’s team visited the statue of Tombides outside the city’s Perth Rectangular Stadium, which was unveiled in 2015.
Dagny Brynjarsdottir, Camila Saez, Riko Ueki and Soraya Walsh were all excited to hear more about Dylan’s story and proud to be able to support a cause that is so close to the hearts of everyone at the Club.
Brynjarsdóttir said: ‘I feel very honoured to have been able to visit the statue and honour Dylan’s memory, which is very important to everyone involved with West Ham United.
West Ham players paid special tribute to the Australian during their tour Down Under
Hammers players, including Matildas star Katrina Gorry, wore special warm-up shirts dedicated to Tombides
“The work that DT38 is doing to raise awareness of testicular cancer and cancer in general is amazing. It’s great that we can continue to spread the word through our T-shirts and match shirts. We’re all looking forward to wearing them at our two matches here.”
“The work that DT38 is doing to raise awareness of testicular cancer and cancer in general is amazing. It’s great that we can continue to spread the word through our T-shirts and match shirts. We’re all looking forward to wearing them at our two matches here.”
Donna Giuffre, Head of Media & Operations at DT38 Australia added: “We are incredibly honoured to welcome the West Ham United Women’s team to Perth. Their visit is also a wonderful way to honour Dylan’s legacy.
‘Dylan Tombides was closely associated with West Ham and to see the club continue to support DT38 and our work means the world to us. This visit highlights the ongoing commitment to raising awareness of testicular cancer and keeping Dylan’s memory alive through football.’