TOM PAYNE
Secretary
1947-1950

President
1954-1957

At a time when the football club was pretty much a bunch of disorganised rough diamonds with a reputation for being the roughest team in the competition, Tommy Payne provided a quiet, confident and stable presence.

A projectionist at a city theatre, Tom worked in isolation and used the football club as a social outlet which helped him to maintain a balanced life style. Well organised and capable, he was instrumental in gradually changing the mindset of the club through gentle persuasion and guidance. His players responded by assuming a healthier approach to their football which reaped greater rewards.

A good judge of character, Tom was instrumental in effecting the successive appointment of coaches who were men of substance; men with a similar interest in developing the game beyond that being entertained locally at the commencement of the fifties.

Tom assumed the presidency in 1954 and succeeded in guiding Chelsea to its first senior premiership at the top level which was a marvellous achievement in its own right.
He was also instrumental in fostering the administrative skills of his relatively inexperienced secretary Claude Dowse, a man who would, in time, become a giant within the football club.
Tom Payne effectively sowed the seeds of future success and played a significant role in changing the thinking at the club.