Fox grew up in North Melbourne and was recruited to local VFA club Hotham for the 1886 season.

Known for his physical strength—due to the large muscles he developed as an ironworker—and attack on the ball, Fox was selected to represent Victoria in three games over 1890 and 1891.

[3] In Hotham's next match, a win over Fitzroy, Vigilant wrote in the North Melbourne Advertiser that Fox was "knocked about" by the opposition but worked hard despite it.

[5] Fox was unable to consistently hold his place in Hotham's side in 1886, for example being named an emergency in round 11 against Williamstown.

[8] It was reported in April 1887 that Fox was looking for a transfer from Hotham to fellow VFA club Melbourne for the 1887 season.

[10][11][12][13] In August 1887, Fox was part of a Melbourne team that toured Tasmania and played several matches against the locals.

[16][17][18][19] In Goal Post's wrap-up of the 1888 season for The Sportsman, he named Fox first when listing Melbourne's best players for that year while being critical of the team's performance overall.

[23][24] By this point of his career, Fox had become a defender and in a match against Essendon in 1889 he was awarded a trophy for "back play".

Despite holding the post for the previous three years, Fox lost the election to William Aitken by one vote.

[36] In August, Aitken left Victoria to move to the United States and Fox was re-elected as captain.

He was praised for the job he had done as captain the previous year once Aitken had left and it was also noted that his personal performance had remained strong.

Played in front of nearly 30,000 spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the match was almost the opposite of their meeting prior in the season.

[43] Fox missed his first match for the club in seven years in August 1893 when he suffered an injury, a strained leg.

Melbourne almost pulled off an upset in June that year against Essendon, leading the match at three-quarter time, but ultimately lost five goals to three.

[59] "A tremendously strong half-back, in private life a welder of iron, whose giant muscles tossed men like marbles."

An October 1925 article in The Age reported that Fox had been working at the South Melbourne Ironworks for 38 years at that point.

[62] In 1926, when Melbourne won their second Victorian Football League premiership, Fox was one of the "old leaders" to celebrate with the team in the clubrooms.