The death of a former Workington Town player who came out of retirement to save a Maryport team has been described as tragic by a coroner.

Peter Richard Dawson, 48, of Curwendale, Stainburn, was found hanged in his home on April 28.

The night before his death, Mr Dawson visited the home of his friend James Robinson to watch rugby league and share a drink, which was something they often did on Thursday nights.

The pair stayed up talking and drinking until just before 5am, when Mr Dawson returned home and went to bed.

He was still asleep when his wife Valerie left for work but the couple had exchanged text messages.

Mr Dawson, who was a construction worker contracting for Sellafield, did not turn up for work and was found hanged at home that afternoon by his wife and his stepson Kevin.

He had left a note which said 'Sorry'.

He had traces of cocaine in his body, which surprised his friends and family, and was almost twice the drink drive limit.

Mr Robinson said there had been no indication that his friend intended to take his own life the following day.

He added: "He was drunk but I didn't think he felt down or depressed."

Mr Robinson visited Mr Dawson's house the following afternoon to speak to his friend but got no response so left.

Mrs Dawson, who had been married to Mr Dawson since 2008 but had been his partner for more than 24 years, said she did not know why her husband would have taken his own life, although he had made attempts to do so before.

She said the family had four holidays booked, one of which was only arranged days before his death.

Mr Dawson was born in Lancaster but grew up in Clifton, leaving Moorclose Secondary School when he was 16 and worked in a number of construction jobs.

He spent at least 15 years playing rugby with Great Clifton Lions, but he also played for Town, Flimby and Ellenborough and clubs from across West Cumbria took to social media to pay tribute to him after his death.

He came out of retirement when Ellenborough Rangers struggled to field an open team and sponsored the Ellenborough man-of-the-match for some years.

Senior coroner David Roberts said that it was impossible to say what had triggered Mr Dawson's actions.

He said: "'Tragic passing' is an often-used phrase in many inquests but this is clearly a case in point."

He concluded that Mr Dawson had committed suicide.