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Yorkshireman Peter Eustace, from the small town of Stocksbridge in
the Pennine Hills, signed for West Ham from Sheffield Wednesday for a
club record fee of £90,000 in January 1970.
Eustace was a
creative wing-half who had spent ten years at Hillsborough, having
played for the Owls in their 3-2 FA Cup Final defeat by Everton in 1966.
He was renowned as a good passer who was composed on the ball, and
following Martin Peters departure for Spurs in March 1970, he assumed
the creative role in the Hammers midfield.
Ironically Eustace
made his West Ham debut in an away match at Sheffield Wednesday and,
despite him making the mistake that allowed Wednesday to score with only
twenty minutes remaining, two goals from Peters eventually secured a
3-2 away victory for the Hammers.
West Ham only narrowly avoided
relegation to the Second Division at the end of Peter's first season, in
which he made 14 first team appearances, scoring goals in the First
Division matches against Burnley and Newcastle.
1970-71 was a
nightmare season from start to finish for the Hammers, culminating in
the infamous Blackpool incident in January in which Eustace played in
the disastrous 4-0 FA Cup third round drubbing by the Tangerines. By
this time Peter was struggling and finding it hard to settle in London.
He lost his place in the side when Pop Robson was signed from Newcastle
in February 1971 and by the end of the season was out of first team
reckoning despite having made 27 appearances, scoring 4 goals.
The
following season saw Eustace make only 2 league appearances and he was
to play his final game for West Ham at Old Trafford in January 1972 as a
substitute in the second replay of the marathon League Cup semi-final
defeat by Stoke City. Peter's relationship with manager Ron Greenwood
whilst at West Ham had been less than harmonious and the Stoke defeat
signaled the end of his West Ham career. He moved to Rotherham United on
loan in March, before eventually being sold back to Sheffield Wednesday
during the summer of 1972 for a fee of £12, 000.
Peter's second
spell at Wednesday lasted four years before an injury to his right ankle
ended his career in 1976. He then managed Sheffield Wednesday and
Leyton Orient before returning in 1995 to West Ham as coach under Harry
Redknapp. (Mark Matthews)
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