Thomas "Tommy" Lawton (6 October 1919 - 6 November 1996) was an English association footballer who rose to fame a short time before the outbreak of the Second World War and enjoyed a successful career which lasted until well into the 1950s.
Despite being at the peak of his playing career playing for Chelsea, he shocked the football world with a move to Third Division Notts County in 1947. for a record transfer fee of £20,000, probably attracted by manager Arthur Stollery, who had formerly been physiotherapist at Chelsea.
At County, he immediately realised an iconic status and real rapport with the Nottingham public, scoring 103 goals in 166 appearances for the club over five seasons and helping them win promotion to Division Two in 1950.
Lawton was capped 23 times for England, scoring 22 goals, including a further sequence of five consecutive internationals in which he scored. His first cap for England came at the age of 19 and his final cap came in 1948 at the age of 29, although he continued to play at club level for a further seven years.
In 1952, Lawton took the player-manager role at Brentford, signing for a club record £16000 fee.