Former Charlton and Crystal Palace midfielder Darren Pitcher has died aged 49.

The midfielder came through the Charlton's youth ranks, joining them at 13, and went on to make 214 appearances, scoring 12 goals before joining Crystal Palace in 1994.

Pitcher was part of the Charlton team which returned to their home stadium at The Valley on December 5, 1992, and helped set up the goal in the 1-0 win over Portsmouth.

Pitcher moved across south London to Palace and the Eagles went on to reach the semi-finals of both the League Cup and FA Cup in his first season.

The midfielder, though, saw his playing career eventually come to a premature end in the wake of a serious knee injury suffered against Huddersfield following a challenge from Paul Reid during a First Division match on August 31, 1996.

Pitcher had a brief spell with Leyton Orient during 1998, but never played professionally again afterwards.

In 2001, Pitcher lost his case of alleged negligence against Huddersfield at the High Court, in which he was seeking damages of more than £1million.

Since leaving professional football, Pitcher had been working in the building trade.