Jimmy Neighbour

Former Hammer Jimmy Neighbour has passed away at the age of just 58.

Neighbour - who starred for West Ham between 1979 and 1982, and was part of the successful promotion winning side of 1980/81 - died suddenly on Saturday after suffering a heart attack at his Woodford Green home, where he was recovering from a recent hip operation.

The right winger, born in Chingford in 1950 began his professional career at Tottenham for whom he made over 150 appearances. Having fallen out of favour at White Hart Lane following the departure of Bill Nicholson he left for Norwich, from whom John Lyall signed Neighbour for £150,000 in September 1979 (following a brief spell in the USA with Seattle Sounders).

After 73 appearances for Lyall's side - including appearances in both the 1981 League Cup Final and replay against Liverpool - Neighbour spent the final few months of his career on loan at Bournemouth. Having hung up his boots he returned to West Ham in 1989 as the club's Youth Development Officer following a brief yet successful stint as manager of non-league Enfield.

A League Cup winner with Spurs in 1971, Neighbour left the Hammers to return to management - firstly in an assistant role at Doncaster before moving on to St Albans City. After moving back to his roots he managed a sports shop in Chingford before ending his career where it began, as a youth coach at Tottenham between 2000-2005.

Jimmy Neighbour 1950-2009

Quelle: kumb.com