Terry McDERMOTT

 An attacking midfielder blessed with flair, vision and great stamina, Terry McDermott joined Liverpool in November 1974 in a £175, 000 deal from Newcastle United, where he had made 56 League appearances and been a member of the side that lost 3-0 to the Reds in the 1974 FA Cup final. McDermott, who also boasted a powerful shot and a wide range of passing skills, had a slow start to his Anfield career, but would go on to become an integral part of the side for six seasons, scoring some vital goals as Liverpool became the dominant force in both domestic and European football. He made his debut in a 0-0 League draw at Everton on November 16, 1974, but after playing the next five League games, he was in and out of the side for the rest of season and finished with only 15 appearances, scoring two goals. His first goal for the club came in a 1-1 draw at Burnley on March 8, 1975 (the photo above is during the game), and his second in a 4-0 home win over former club Newcastle later that month. Terry's inability to hold down a regular place that season mirrored Liverpool's failure to win any silverware. The Reds made little progress in Cup competitions - none of which McDermott played in - and finished runners-up to Derby County in the race for the League title. An upturn in Terry's fortunes seemed likely when he began the 1975-76 campaign with a run of seven consecutive League appearances, but after a 2-0 defeat at Ipswich Town in mid-September, he was dropped in favour of Brian Hall and failed to start another game in any competition that season. He made just two substitute appearances, both in the League, scoring his only goal of the season in a 1-0 win at Middlesbrough in November, and coming on in a 2-0 home win over Leeds United in February '76. With only nine League appearances, he missed out on a championship medal as Liverpool won a record ninth title, and then suffered a similar fate in European football. The Reds beat FC Bruges of Belgium 4-3 on aggregate to lift the UEFA Cup but McDermott was an unused sub in both games and, under the rules of the time, was not entitled to a medal. (Martin Greensill)

The 1976-77 season began with Terry still out of favour and he did not appear in the side until coming on a sub, and scoring, in a 5-0 win at Northern Irish side Crusaders in a European Cup 1st round 2nd leg tie on September 28. He started the next game, a 0-0 League draw with Middlesbrough at Anfield in early October, and held his place for 13 of the next 15 League games, scoring once, in a 3-0 home win against Aston Villa at the end of that month. He lost his place in the side to Jimmy Case in January 1977, but an injury to veteran midfielder Ian Callaghan saw Terry start the last eleven League games of the season and his total of 26 appearances (one goal) was enough to give him the first winners' medal of his career as Liverpool wrapped up a record 10th League title with a 0-0 draw at home to West Ham United on May 14. McDermott was also prominent in other competitions as Liverpool went for an unprecedented League-European Cup-FA Cup treble. In the FA Cup, he made five appearances, scoring the opener in a 2-2 draw with Everton in the semi-final at Maine Road, Manchester, on April 23, a delightful 20-yard chip that was later voted 'Goal Of The Season' by viewers of BBC TV's Match Of The Day. Liverpool won the replay 3-0 but were beaten 2-1 by Manchester United in the Wembley final, Terry starting both matches. Dreams of the Treble were over but Liverpool had the chance to end the season on a high as, just four days later, they contested the European Cup final in Rome against Borussia Moenchengladbach. The Reds started well and in the 27th minute it was McDermott who put them 1-0 up, running onto a pass from Steve Heighway to fire home right-footed from just inside the penalty area. Liverpool ran out 3-1 winners to collect Europe's most prestigious club trophy for the first time and become the first English side to complete the League Championship-European Cup double.

Terry picked up his second major medal and, after making 38 appearances in all competitions (13 more than in the two previous seasons combined) and scoring two vital goals, his Anfield career was definitely on the up. Terry kept his place at the start of the following campaign and went on to cement his role as an attacking midfielder. He made 37 League appearances, scoring four times including the only goal in a 1-0 home win over Derby County in September 1977 and the last in a 4-0 victory away to Leicester City two months later. Liverpool ended the season with an unbeaten run of 12 League games but failed to complete a hat-trick of League titles, finishing runners-up to Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest side. McDermott made 16 appearances in other competitions, including eight in the League Cup (without scoring) as Liverpool lost 1-0 to Forest in the replayed final at Old Trafford on March 22. Terry also made seven appearances in the European competitions, scoring his first hat-trick for the club (in the space of 16 minutes!) in a 6-0 demolition of UEFA Cup holders SV Hamburg in a European Super Cup 2nd leg tie at Anfield on December 6, Liverpool taking the trophy 7-1 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw in Germany a fortnight earlier. His only other goal in Europe that term came as the Reds brushed aside Benfica 4-1 in a European Cup quarter-final 2nd leg tie at Anfield in March 1978. Liverpool progressed to the final at Wembley on May 10, and beat their old foes, FC Bruges, 1-0 with a goal from Kenny Dalglish. Terry helped Liverpool dominate the Belgian side and added another medal to his collection, a fitting end to a season in which he had made a total of 53 appearances, scoring eight goals, and become a fixture in the team. (Martin Greensill)

Terry McDermott would again be heavily involved as Liverpool sought to regain the League title in the 1978-79 campaign. His goal in a 7-0 thumping of Tottenham Hotspur in September is one of the best ever seen at Anfield, a flowing move from Liverpool's own penalty box which culminated in Terry heading home after a 70-yard run. This demolition of a Spurs side featuring Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa, who had just won the World Cup with Argentina, was the highlight of a superb start to the season which saw the Reds drop only one point in their first eleven League games. Liverpool's rich vein of form saw them open up a big lead in the title race and they continued to impress, leading throughout the season and claiming a record 11th League championship after beating Aston Villa 3-0 at Anfield on May 8, McDermott scoring the last goal. He made 37 League appearances in all, scoring eight goals, including a brace in a 2-0 win against Nottingham Forest at Anfield in December, a victory that ended Forest's record run of 42 League games without defeat. Surprisingly, he failed to find the net in any of 12 Cup ties he played in that season as Liverpool took an early exit from both the European and League Cups and fell at the semi-final stage of the FA Cup, Manchester United beating them 1-0 in a replay at Goodison Park. Terry made 53 appearances in all competitions in the 1979-80 season, scoring 16 goals.

His best run of goalscoring form in the League came in November-December, when he found the net six times in six games, including a brace in a 2-1 home win against Tottenham on November 17 and the opener in a 4-0 home victory against Middlesbrough a fortnight later. His last League goal of the season came as early February 1980, in a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest at Anfield, but his total of 11 from 37 games was impressive for a midfielder and helped Liverpool to claim back-to-back League titles, giving Terry his third championship medal in four seasons. McDermott made 16 appearances in other competitions, scoring five times, most memorably a stunning 25-yard volley that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win at Tottenham in a FA Cup 6th round tie in March 1980. However, the Reds fell at the next hurdle in that competition, Arsenal knocking them out 1-0 in a semi-final that, in the days before penalty shoot-outs, went to three replays. That defeat compounded a disappointing campaign for the club in knockout competitions as they had earlier lost in semi-finals of the League Cup (beaten 2-1 on aggregate by Nottingham Forest) and the first round of the European Cup (beaten 4-2 on aggregate by the Soviet side Dynamo Tbilisi). However, Terry ended the season on a personal high as he became the first player to be voted 'Player of the Year' by both the Football Writers' Association and the PFA (Professional Footballers' Association). (Martin Greensill)

Terry was again in excellent form during the 1980-81 campaign, a marathon season which saw him play 60 of Liverpool's 63 games. He missed only two League matches, scoring 13 goals to be the club's topscorer, including braces in two home wins: 4-2 against Middlesbrough in October and 3-0 against Stoke City in April. However, with strikers Kenny Dalglish and David Johnson only netting eight times apiece, Liverpool struggled for goals and failed to complete a hat-trick of League titles, ending up in 5th spot (their lowest finish for 11 years), nine points behind champions Aston Villa. McDermott made 20 appearances in other competitions, scoring nine times, including a hat-trick in a 10-1 demolition of Finnish minnows Oulu Palloseura in a European Cup 1st round 2nd leg tie at Anfield in October. His goals helped Liverpool overcome the disappointment of the poor League campaign as they beat West Ham United 2-1 to lift the League Cup for the first time in their history (in the replayed final at Villa Park on April 1), and followed up by regaining the European Cup with a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid in Paris on May 27, left back Alan Kennedy scoring the only goal of the game to give Liverpool a third triumph in Europe's premier club competition in five seasons. Terry could be very pleased with a season in which he had won two major medals and scored 22 goals from 60 games in all competitions, a prolific return for a midfielder.

The following campaign continued in similar vein with McDermott in fine goalscoring form despite Liverpool's shaky start to the League season (they were down in mid-table at the end of 1981). He found the net 14 times in 29 League appearances, including braces in a 2-2 home draw with Swansea City in October and a 3-0 win at Aston Villa in January. He also managed six in 19 games in other competitions, including a brace in another drubbing of Oulu Palloseura, this time the hapless Finns losing 'only' 7-0 in a European Cup 1st round 2nd leg tie at Anfield in September. However, he was dropped from the team in March '82, a young Australian, Craig Johnston, taking over the No 10 shirt Terry had made his own for the last five seasons. Johnston scored four goals in his first seven League appearances and his good form kept McDermott out of the side for the rest of the campaign. Liverpool recovered their form to win the title for a record 13th time, giving Terry another major medal to add to the League Cup gong he had won earlier in the season (the Reds beating Tottenham 3-1 in the Wembley final on March 13), but the writing was on the wall for his Anfield career. McDermott made just three appearances in season 1982-83, his final one coming in a 1-0 win over Irish side Dundalk in a European Cup 1st round 2nd leg tie at Anfield on September 28. Later that month, he returned to Newcastle United in a £100, 000 deal, bringing an end to a distinguished Liverpool career in which he had made 329 appearances in all competitions, scoring 81 goals, and won nine major honours. (Martin Greensill)