third tier of English football. The team was not helped by the involvement of Scottish duo Paul Telfer and Darren Salton in a motor accident early on in the season – under-21 international defender Salton was nearly killed, and never played again. Luton were bottom of the table shortly into the New Year, and Pleat reacted by procuring a loan deal to bring Luton-born England international Kerry Dixon to the club on loan from Southampton. Dixon gelled well alongside Phil Gray up front, and Luton stayed up. 1993–1994 started with David Pleat making Dixon's move permanent, and re-signing Mitchell Thomas from West Ham United. Although Luton struggled in the league, form was found in the FA Cup – Scott Oakes starred as Luton raced to the FA Cup semi-final and a trip to Wembley. 27,500 Luton supporters saw Gavin Peacock seal a 2–0 win for Chelsea, and after the semi-final defeat, Luton lost five league games in a row. However, a 3–2 home win over West Bromwich Albion earned survival three games from the end of the season, keeping Luton in the second tier for another year. Luton laboured once again in 1994–1995, with the side struggling to score at home. Pleat's Luton side, including young players such as Oakes, Telfer and John Hartson, reacted positively when Pleat turned down the advances of Tottenham Hotspur to return to North London as General Manager, and rocketed up to fifth in the table, and for perhaps the first time in three seasons of Division One football, promotion was looking a real possibility. Hartson was bought by Arsenal for £2,500,000 soon after – a then-British record for a teenager. The season petered out into obscurity following Hartson's sale, and Luton finished 16th. Pleat left for a second time in the summer of 1995, moving to Sheffield Wednesday. His successor Terry Westley was promoted from youth team coach, but was sacked after just six months in charge. Lennie Lawrence was brought in as a replacement, but he was unable to stop Luton from finishing bottom of Division One. The 1996–1997 season started just as badly as the last, with three straight losses. However, the introduction of young forward Andrew Fotiadis saw Luton burst into life, as they shot up the table with a run of eight wins and two draws in eleven games. Tony Thorpe, too, proved to be a revelation, scoring 28 goals