Peter Beardsley

Peter Andrew Beardsley (born 18 January 1961) is an English football coach and former footballer who played as a forward or midfielder.

In 1977, Beardsley joined fellow former Wallsend Boys Club player Steve Bruce for a trial with Third Division club Gillingham.

Although Gillingham signed Bruce as an apprentice, they turned Beardsley away.

He also had unsuccessful trials with Burnley and Cambridge United.

Beardsley eventually began his professional career with Carlisle United in 1978.

The new-look striker partnership of Beardsley and Aldridge took over from the long-standing partnership of Dalglish and Ian Rush, which was arguably the most successful partnership in English football during the 1980s.

He managed 22 goals in 104 league games, helping them win promotion to the Second Division at the end of the 1981–82 season.

During 1982–83, he also spent time at Canadian club Vancouver Whitecaps and Manchester United, although his period at United was unsuccessful, making only one single appearance in a League Cup tie against AFC Bournemouth, and otherwise failing to break into the first team.

Eventually in September 1983, he was signed back to Newcastle United.

On 23 September 1983, Beardsley signed for Second Division Newcastle United for a fee of £150,000.

He made his debut for the Magpies a day later in the 1–1 draw with Barnsley at Oakwell.

Beardsley was an instant hit with the Newcastle supporters, scoring and setting up spectacular goals.

He went on to celebrate promotion with his teammates, who were captained by Kevin Keegan in his final season as a player.

They finished in the final promotion spot behind winners Chelsea and runners-up Sheffield Wednesday.

He scored 20 league goals that season and formed an exciting strike partnership with former England striker Keegan, who had also won major honours with Liverpool.

Beardsley scored his first goal for the Magpies on 19 October 1983 in their 2–0 victory over Cardiff City at Ninian Park.

His first goals at St James' Park came in Newcastle's next fixture, against Manchester City.

United beat City 5–0 and Beardsley scored his first ever hat-trick.

After returning from the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Beardsley helped a struggling Newcastle to avoid relegation in the 1986–87 season, eventually finishing 17th.

He scored just five goals in 36 appearances that season, winning a further six caps for his country, before Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish made a national record £1.9 million offer to Newcastle for Beardsley's services.

In 1987, he set a record transfer fee in the English game and represented his country 59 times between 1986 and 1996, once as captain, taking part in two FIFA World Cups (1986 and 1990) and UEFA Euro 1988.

At club level, he played for Newcastle United, Liverpool and Everton with stints with the Toffees and Magpies resulting in over 200 Premier League appearances.

Over the course of his career, he also had spells with Carlisle United, Manchester United, Vancouver Whitecaps, Bolton Wanderers, Manchester City, Fulham, Hartlepool United and the Melbourne Knights.

Manager Willie McFaul accepted the offer and Beardsley was on his way to Merseyside after four seasons on Tyneside which had brought a total of a 61 goals (all in the league), his transfer completed on 14 July 1987.

12 years later, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson revealed in his autobiography that he had made a £2 million bid for Beardsley, but McFaul had rejected the offer and told him that he wouldn't sell the player even if Ferguson offered £3 million.

Beardsley joined Liverpool at the same time as John Barnes, the Watford winger.

They were added to John Aldridge, who had signed during the previous campaign, with the three playing against Arsenal on Beardsley's debut at Highbury on the opening day of the 1987–88 season, 15 August 1987.

Aldridge scored after just nine minutes, Liverpool went on to win 2–1, and this shaped the rest of the season for the Reds.

Rush had departed to Serie A club Juventus, while player-manager Dalglish had decided only to make occasional first-team appearances from 1987 to 1988 onwards, finally retiring as a player in August 1990.

Beardsley's first goal for his new club came on 29 August 1987 in the 4–1 victory over Coventry City at Highfield Road, with Beardsley scoring in the 83rd minute.

He helped Liverpool to a record-equalling 29 league matches undefeated as Liverpool convincingly strolled to the League title with just two defeats to their name.

However, there was disappointment at the end when Wimbledon denied them the 'double' with a shock 1–0 win in the 1990 FA Cup final, a game in which Beardsley found the net, only for it to be ruled out by the referee who awarded Liverpool a free-kick for an earlier foul instead of allowing play to continue.

Between 2001 and 2018, he worked in various coaching roles at Newcastle United, varying from the first team to the youth academy.

In 2010, he was briefly appointed as the caretaker manager.

As a youth player, Beardsley played for Wallsend Boys Club in North Tyneside before joining Newcastle United.

In his first season in the First Division, Beardsley scored 17 goals in 38 league games as Newcastle finished in 14th position.

These included a hat-trick on New Year's Day in a 3–1 home win over local rivals Sunderland, who finished the season relegated.

During the following campaign, he played in all of Newcastle's 42 league matches, scoring 19 goals.

In one fixture against West Ham United, Beardsley ended the game as a stand-in goalkeeper.

The game ended in an 8–1 defeat for Newcastle, with Beardsley conceding the last three goals.