Peter McDonnell (born 11 June 1953) is an English former professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who played as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
in England, the United States and Hong Kong.
Career
McDonnell was born
Kendal,
Westmorland
Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland'';R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref> is a historic county in North West England spanning the southern Lake District and the northern Dales. It had an ...
, England. He began his professional career in 1973 with
Bury, before being signed by
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
boss
Bill Shankly after one year. He spent four years as reserve goalkeeper at
Anfield
Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 189 ...
, without making a first-team appearance. There were no substitute goalkeepers in domestic football in those days, and so McDonnell's only first-team squad involvement came in
European football
UEFA competitions (french: competitions de l'UEFA), referred improperly by the mass media as European football, are the set of tournaments organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), generally in professional and amateur asso ...
.
He was on the bench for the
1977 European Cup Final
The 1977 European Cup Final was an association football match between Liverpool of England and Borussia Mönchengladbach of West Germany on 25 May 1977 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy (the venue was decided in Bern by the UEFA Executive Com ...
, a game which Liverpool won. However, McDonnell's winner's medal was lost after the game, believed by some to have been stolen and given to one of Liverpool's first-team players who had missed the final. Following the arrival of
Steve Ogrizovic, he was pushed down to third choice, and left to join
Oldham Athletic
Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system.
The history of Oldham Athletic be ...
in 1978.
He spent four years there, before heading to
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
in the
NASL, then to
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
to play for
Hong Kong Rangers
Hong Kong Rangers Football Club (), often abbreviated to Rangers, currently known as Biu Chun Rangers due to sponsorship reasons, is a Hong Kong football club which currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. They have won the Hong Kong ...
, eventually returning home to represent a number of non-league clubs. He spent some time at
Barrow in the
Northern Premier League, and later the
Football Conference
The National League (named Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league in England consisting of three divisions, the National League, National League North, and National League South. It was called the ...
and won the
FA Trophy at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...
in 1990.
Personal life
McDonnell is a referee in the North Lancashire and District Football League and is a
Westmorland Football Association council member.
Honours
*
European Cup:
1976–77
*
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
:
1975–76
*
FA Charity Shield:
1974,
1976
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 ...
,
1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...
*
European Super Cup:
1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...
References
External links
Profile at LFCHistory.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:McDonnell, Peter
Living people
1953 births
Sportspeople from Kendal
English men's footballers
Footballers from Cumbria
Men's association football goalkeepers
UEFA Champions League winning players
UEFA Cup winning players
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players
Hong Kong First Division League players
Kendal Town F.C. players
Bury F.C. players
Liverpool F.C. players
Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players
Dallas Tornado players
Hong Kong Rangers FC players
Barrow A.F.C. players
Morecambe F.C. players
English football managers
Barrow A.F.C. managers
English expatriate men's footballers
English expatriate sportspeople in Hong Kong
Expatriate men's footballers in Hong Kong
English expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States