The region's soccer community is paying tribute to a hard-working teacher of the game for all and all-round good guy who always had a joke at the ready. Payton died this week aged 69, weeks short of his 70^th birthday.

Ballarat and District Soccer Association president Herman Bogers said Payton's efforts in the game as a player, coach, manager and administrator were prolific.

Payton was an "out-and-out striker" who as a teenager was a key part of Ballarat Soccer Club's 1968 championship team.

Bogers said Payton went on to put an incredible effort into coaching, from junior to senior and representative ranks, and at one time was the highest-qualified soccer coach in the region.

His passion for promoting accessibility and equality in sport was immense.

Payton was awarded the 2005 Winston Churchill Fellowship for a learning tour across the United Kingdom, Ireland and Germany to research coaching and administration methods for players with physical and intellectual disabilities.

For this, Payton was a true champion in the game and key driver in helping Ballarat Specialist School students have fun in soccer.

"You could see the boys and girls taking part and the pleasure that would give him," Bogers said. "To see kids who were wheelchair bound getting involved in some way in the game - those tournaments were his baby. he got that going and was something he really looked forward to each year."

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Long-time Ballarat Specialist School physical education teacher Craige Emonson said Payton was an amazing person who embodied togetherness and support.

Emerson said his close friend and mentor would teach soccer at the school and encourage students to get involved and be included at his soccer clubs about the region.

"When he was there - nearly every Friday - he was always there for the children. The children were number one," Emerson said. "...I've had numerous parents let me know the impact he has had on their adolescents to be moving and contributing. He had them burning energy in the right way."

Payton was a long-serving member on the BDSA board and he was primarily involved at a club level with Ballarat Soccer Club, Sebastopol Vikings and Forest Rangers.

The Rangers issued a statement on social media, including "his jokes and banter will definitely be missed, no longer on tender hooks waiting for the punch line".

He was also well-known for taking soccer skills clinics with lots of laughs into schools across the region.

Payton also had a following for a Saturday morning soccer segment on Ballarat radio, giving updates and soccer scores from the district.

Bogers said Payton loved to tell a good story on air and would often tell the same jokes, over and over, but had a way of always making them funny.

"Charlie was Charlie, there were no false pretenses with him. What you got was what you got," Bogers said. "I remember going away with him once to senior regionals and we didn't have a good side but it was quite a lot of fun.

"Charlie was was all about putting it into the big picture and trying to enjoy the game from the start."

When it came to English Premier League, Payton was a parochial West Ham United fan and Bogers said there was joy in knowing his friend finally got a chance to see his club playing some good football after years of struggles.

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