In the summer of 1981, Ally McCoist was regarded as one of the hottest prospects in British football. Having found the net consistently during a successful season with St Johnstone, a series of fine displays while representing Scotland at the European Youth Championships in West Germany in May 1981 attracted interest from the likes of Rangers, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Middlesbrough. However, it was Sunderland that eventually snared the talented centre-forward, with the North East side parting with a club record fee of £400, 000 to tempt the eighteen-year-old south of the border. After struggling to maintain their status as a top flight club in the 1980/81 season - it took a final day victory over European Cup winners Liverpool to stave off relegation to Division Two - Sunderland entered a new era at the outset of the 1981/82 season under the charge of new manager, Alan Durban. The acquisition of Ally McCoist was part of the reconstructive surgery that Durban performed on the first-team pool at Roker Park, and the new manager, who had been capped twenty-seven times by Wales and won a First Division championship medal with Derby County during his playing days, saw a great deal of potential in the young Scot, reckoning he had the ability to be as successful in England as other tartan exports such as Kenny Dalglish and Steve Archibald. Ally made his debut three days after signing for Sunderland, replacing Alan Brown in an enthralling 3-3 draw with UEFA Cup holders Ipswich Town at Portman Road on August 29. He made his first appearance in the starting eleven a few weeks later, and in November, he netted his first goal in the English First Division when he scored The Wearsiders' second goal in a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest at Roker Park. That goal was a rare bright spot for McCoist in what proved a disappointing first season in a Sunderland jersey. The sizeable financial outlay that had been required to get him to the club saw him burdened with the weight of expectation Sunderland were perennial relegation strugglers in the English First Division, and many expected the acquisition of the precociously talented McCoist would help propel the club back towards the higher echelons of the English game and in this his first season as a full-time professional, Ally struggled to adapt and live up to those lofty expectations. He flitted in and out of the team for much of the campaign, as Sunderland once again struggled to remain in the First Division. By the conclusion of the season, Ally had added just one more goal to his season's tally a 20-yard curling effort in a 2-0 win over Southampton in March to post a disappointing goal-scoring return of just two goals in thirty-two league and cup appearances. McCoist's frustration was mirrored by Sunderland, who flirted with relegation once again. The Wearsiders needed a 1-0 win over Manchester City at Roker Park on the final day of the season to safeguard their future in the top tier of English Football. The young upstart had clearly failed to live up to his star billing in his debut campaign, and was linked with a swift return to Scotland in the summer of 1982, with Aberdeen his rumoured destination. However, the proposed cash-plus-McCoist deal that was tabled by Sunderland failed to tempt The Dons to part with Gordon Strachan, which meant that Ally would remain in the Roker Park ranks for the 1982/83 season. (Alistair Aird).
The picture above of Ally McCoist was taken during 1982 by G.Herringshaw ©.
In the close season, McCoist signalled his intent for the new campaign
by grabbing three goals in as many games during Sunderland's pre-season
tour of Scotland. His potent form in the friendly fixtures was carried
into the opening matches of the 1982/83 season, with the young striker
finding the net in Sunderland's thrilling 3-1 opening day win over
European Cup winners Aston Villa at Villa Park and also scoring in a 3-2
defeat at the hands of Brighton & Hove Albion in September.
Although Sunderland lurched through a horrific start to the season,
embarking on a wretched run of results that included an 8-0 thrashing at
the hands of Graham Taylor's Watford, McCoist's productive start to the
season continued, and he added to his tally with a feast of goals in
October. The defences of Norwich City, Manchester City, Everton, and
Southampton were breached, and the youngster appeared to finally be
illustrating why Sunderland had parted with the money they had when they
had procured his services just over a year earlier. He also broke his
duck in English Cup competitions when he scored one of Sunderland's five
goals against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the opening round of the
League Cup. Alas, a barren run in front of goal followed, and by
December, Ally had lost his place in the team. During his absence,
Sunderland hauled themselves back from the relegation precipice by
embarking on a fine run of form that included a sequence of six
successive clean sheets, which meant McCoist found it difficult to force
his way back into the team. He only made fleeting appearances in the
latter part of the campaign, but despite scoring heavily in the reserve
team, he failed to get his name on the score-sheet when he stepped up to
the first XI. He ended his second season at Roker Park with a return of
six goals in twenty-eight league appearances, in addition to that
solitary strike in the League Cup. Those goals would be his last in the
red-and-white stripes of Sunderland, for Ally McCoist left Roker Park in
June 1983 when he returned to Scotland to sign for his boyhood heroes,
Glasgow Rangers. His two-year stint on Wearside had undoubtedly been a
disappointment, although had he had the benefit of a few more years of
experience, things may well have turned out differently. Alan Durban
always maintained that he had no regrets over the purchase of McCoist,
insisting that not at any stage did he feel he had over-estimated his
potential. His opinion was that it was a case of 'right player, wrong
time', and reckoned that had McCoist been supported by a better team,
one that wasn't fighting for their lives at the wrong end of the First
Division, then his talents could have been better nurtured, which he
felt would have reaped a handsome reward for Sunderland. Instead McCoist
was on his way home, with long-time admirer John Greig paying a paltry
£185, 000 to secure his services, less than half the amount that
Sunderland had paid for him two years earlier. The passing of time would
show that that was an outstanding piece of business for the Glasgow
club. (Alistair Aird).