367: 13 December 1983

Steve Penney

Name: Stephen Alexander Penney
Born: 16 January 1964, Ballymena
Height: 5.06 ft
Weight: 10.06 st
Position: Winger/Midfielder

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 17 Full Caps (1984-1988).
Club Honours: (with Brighton) Football League Division Three Runner-Up 1987/88.

Club Career: 

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Other
Ballymena Utd	80/81-83/84	Aug-79	Youth	48 (6)/12	-	-	-
Brighton &a H.A.	83/84-90/91	Nov-83	-	125(13)/14	12(0)/0	9(0)/1	2(1)/0
Heart.of.Midl'n	91/92	Jul-91	Free	3 (6)/ 0	0(1)/0	0(1)/0	1(0)/0
Burnley	92/93	May-92	Free	10 (1)/ 3	3(0)/0	2(0)/0	-
TOTALS	-	£-		186(26)/29	13(1)/	11(1)/1	3(1)/0

Biography:
All of Steve Penney’s seventeen caps were won while playing for Brighton & Hove Albion, making him the club’s most capped player. Injury-troubled for much of his career, Penney retired in January 1994 having not played for over a year.

More to follow.

Wikipedia
LondonHearts
ClaretsMad

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
16-10-1984 Israel........ H W 3-0 FR
11-09-1985 Turkey........ A D 0-0 WCQ
16-10-1985 Romania....... A W 1-0 WCQ
13-11-1985 England....... A D 0-0 WCQ
26-02-1986 France........ A D 0-0 FR
26-03-1986 Denmark....... H D 1-1 FR
23-04-1986 Morocco....... H W 2-1 FR
03-06-1986 Algeria....... N D 1-1 WCF
07-06-1986 Spain......... N L 1-2 WCF
15-10-1986 England....... A L 0-3 ECQ
12-11-1986 Turkey........ A D 0-0 ECQ
18-02-1987 Israel........ A D 1-1 FR 1 Goal
23-03-1988 Poland........ H D 1-1 FR
27-04-1988 France........ H D 0-0 FR
21-05-1988 Malta......... H W 3-0 WCQ 1 Goal
14-09-1988 Rep of Ireland H D 0-0 WCQ
21-12-1988 Spain......... A L 0-4 WCQ

Summary: 17/2. Won 4, Drew 10, Lost 3.

Ballymena stats courtesy of ‘Neil Coleman - The Official History of Ballymena United FC’

Ian Stewart

Name: Ian Edwin Stewart
Born: 10 September 1961, Belfast
Height: 5.06½ ft
Weight: 11.09 st
Position: Winger/Forward

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 31 Full Caps (1982-1987), Youth, 3 Schools Caps (1977).
Club Honours: (with QPR) Football League Division Two Champion 1982/83.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA.Cup	FL.Cup	Europe	Other
Q.P.R.	80/81-84/85	May-80	Youth	55(12)/ 2	2(1)/0	6(3)/2	2(1)/0	-
Millwall	82/83	Mar-83	Loan	10 (1)/ 3	-	-	-	-
Newcastle U.	85/86-86/87	Aug-85	£150k	34 (8)/ 3	2(1)/0	4(1)/0	-	-
Portsmouth	87/88-88/89	Jul-97	Free	0 (1)/ 0	-	-	-	0(1)/0
Brentford	87/88	Feb-88	Loan	4 (3)/ 0	-	-	-	-
Leicester C.	88/89	Dec-88	Trial	0 (0)/ 0	-	-	-	-
Aldershot	88/89-91/92	Jan-89	Free	94 (7)/ 0	5(0)/2	6(1)/0		7(0)/2
Colchester.U.	91/92	1992	Free	6 (4)/ 2	(Football Conference)
Harrow Boro’	-	Nov-92	-	-	(Isthmian League)
TOTALS		£150k		203(36)/10	9(2)/2	16(5)/2	2(1)/0	7(1)/2

*Aldershots' Football League record for the 1991/92 season was expunged following their expulsion. Stewart's League record for the season read 6(5)/1.

Biography:
Ian Stewart, who had won Northern Ireland schoolboy and youth caps, was signed by QPR in May 1980 on the recommendation of scout Bill Smyth. The move made up for his earlier disappointment having been turned down by Everton as a seventeen year-old.

Stewart made his League début in a Division Two clash with Blackburn in October 1980 but over the next few seasons he failed to make an impact on the QPR first-team, despite his ability to play up front or on the wing. In fact, Stewart had made just three appearances for QPR at the time of his Northern Ireland début in the 1982 World Cup warm-up game with France. Although he failed to make the Finals squad Stewart was boosted by the experience and immediately after the World Cup he established himself as a regular in the Northern Ireland line-up, marking his third cap in November 1982 with the goal that clinched a 1-0 win over West Germany.

On the domestic front things still appeared grim, and in March 1983 he joined Millwall on loan. Finally, in the 1983/84 season, Stewart established himself in the QPR first-team, helping them to fifth position in their first season back in Division One. He maintained his place in the QPR side for the following season before being sold to Newcastle, who were looking to fill the gap left by Chris Waddle’s departure to Spurs, in August 1985. At St James’ Park Stewart again established himself as a regular in the match day squad, starting 25 games and coming of the bench three times during the 1985/86 campaign.

A regular in the Northern Ireland side right up to the 1986 World Cup Finals in Mexico, Stewart was surprisingly dropped from the starting line-up for the first two games against Algeria and Spain as Billy Bingham went for a more solid approach with Nigel Worthington at left-midfield. He did however start the final game against Brazil but after that his international career just petered out.

At Newcastle too the problems were setting in and after just nine starts during the 1986/87 season manager Iam McFaul released Stewart. A spell with Portsmouth was scuppered early on by a falling-out with manager Alan Ball, and he made just two first team appearances, both as substitute, in a year and a half. There followed a settled spell with Aldershot from January 1989. Indeed Stewart was at the Recreation Ground when the club folded during the 1991/92 season, the end of the ‘Shots’ League career and Stewart’s. Stewart played 11 games that season, scoring once, but these statistics were expunged from the records.

With the Shots gone, Stewart joined Colchester United for their run-in to the Vauxhall Conference title. Any hopes Stewart may have held over a return to the Football League where scuppered when he fell out with Us boss Roy McDonough when he refused to to travel on a three-day "bonding trip". Stewart then finished his playing days with Harrow Borough.

Ian Stewart was a particularly gifted footballer, with speed and skill, but he suffered from something that has afflicted many wingers, he had a tendency to disappear from games or just continuously run himself into corners. That, coupled with a very low goal-scoring rate for an attacking player, was perhaps what ruined his chances of making a prolonged impression in top-level football.

Throughout his career Stewart retained a great rapport with teammates and fans alike, his sense of humour legendary. Since retiring from playing he has worked with the Irish FA, coaching the with some success the girls‘ and women’s international teams and working as a grassroots development officer.

From his early days in teenage bands to the present day when he works to promote up-and-coming talent, Stewart has also retained a keen interest in the Northern Ireland music scene.



Northern Ireland Cap Details:
24-03-1982 France.... a L 0-4 FR. sub
13-10-1982 Austria... a L 0-2 ECQ
17-11-1982 W. Germany h W 1-0 ECQ 1 Goal
15-12-1982 Albania... a D 0-0 ECQ
30-03-1983 Turkey.... h W 2-1 ECQ
27-04-1983 Albania... h W 1-0 ECQ 1 Goal

24-05-1983 Scotland.. a D 0-0 BC
28-05-1983 England... h D 0-0 BC
31-05-1983 Wales..... h L 0-1 BC
21-09-1983 Austria... h W 3-1 ECQ
12-10-1983 Turkey.... a L 0-1 ECQ
16-11-1983 W. Germany a W 1-0 ECQ
13-12-1983 Scotland.. h W 2-0 BC
24-04-1984 England... a L 0-1 BC
22-05-1984 Wales..... a D 1-1 BC
27-05-1984 Finland... a L 0-1 WCQ
12-09-1984 Romania... h W 3-2 WCQ
16-10-1984 Israel.... h W 3-0 FR
14-11-1984 Finland... h W 2-1 WCQ
27-02-1985 England... h L 0-1 WCQ
27-03-1985 Spain..... a D 0-0 FR
01-05-1985 Turkey.... h W 2-0 WCQ
16-10-1985 Romania... a W 1-0 WCQ
13-11-1985 England... a D 0-0 WCQ
26-03-1986 Denmark... h D 1-1 FR
23-04-1986 Morocco... h W 2-1 FR
03-06-1986 Algeria... n D 1-1 WCF sub
07-06-1986 Spain..... n L 1-2 WCF sub
12-06-1986 Brazil.... n L 0-3 WCF
15-10-1986 England... a L 0-3 ECQ
18-02-1987 Israel.... a D 1-1 FR. sub

Summary: 27(4)/2. Won 12, Drew 9, Lost 10.

John O'Neill

Name: John Patrick O’Neill
Born: 11 March 1958, Londonderry
Height: 5.11¾ ft
Weight: 13.03 st
Position: Centre-Back

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 39 Full Caps / 2 Goals (1980-1986), 1 Under-21 Cap (1978).
Club Honours: (with Leicester) Football League Division Two Champion 1979/80, Third (promoted) 1982/83.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA.Cup	FL.Cup	Europe	Other
Derry Athletic		-	Youth	-	-	-	-	-
Leicester	76/77-86/87	1976	N/C	313/10	19/1	13/1	-	-
Q.P.R.	87/88	Jul-87	£150k	2/ 0	-	-	-	-
Norwich	87/88	Dec-87	£-	1/ 0	-	-	-	-
TOTALS		£-		316/10	19/1	13/1	0/0	0/0

Biography:
To follow.

Football Heroes
Flown The Nest

Northern Ireland Cap Details:
26-03-80 Israel.... a 0-0 WCQ
17-05-80 Scotland.. h 1-0 BC
20-05-80 England... a 1-1 BC
23-05-80 Wales..... a 1-0 BC
11-06-80 Australia. a 2-1 FR 1 Goal
15-06-80 Australia. a 1-1 FR
18-06-80 Australia. a 2-1 FR
19-11-80 Portugal.. a 0-1 WCQ
25-03-81 Scotland.. a 1-1 WCQ
29-04-81 Portugal.. h 1-0 WCQ
19-05-81 Scotland.. a 0-2 BC
03-06-81 Sweden.... a 0-1 WCQ
14-10-81 Scotland.. h 0-0 WCQ
18-11-81 Israel.... h 1-0 WCQ
23-02-82 England... a 0-4 BC
24-03-82 France.... a 0-4 FR
28-04-82 Scotland.. h 1-1 BC
04-07-82 France.... n 1-4 WCF sub
13-10-82 Austria... a 0-2 ECQ
17-11-82 W. Germany h 1-0 ECQ
15-12-82 Albania... a 0-0 ECQ
30-03-83 Turkey.... h 2-1 ECQ
27-04-83 Albania... h 1-0 ECQ
24-05-83 Scotland.. a 0-0 HC
13-12-83 Scotland.. h 2-0 HC sub
16-10-84 Israel.... h 3-0 FR
14-11-84 Finland... h 2-1 WCQ 1 Goal
27-02-85 England... h 0-1 WCQ
27-03-85 Spain..... a 0-0 FR
01-05-85 Turkey.... h 2-0 WCQ
11-09-85 Turkey.... a 0-0 WCQ
16-10-85 Romania... a 1-0 WCQ
13-11-85 England... a 0-0 WCQ
26-02-86 France.... a 0-0 FR
26-03-86 Denmark... h 1-1 FR
23-04-86 Morocco... h 2-1 FR
03-06-86 Algeria... n 1-1 WCF
07-06-86 Spain..... n 1-2 WCF
12-06-86 Brazil.... n 0-3 WCF

Summary: 37(2)/2. Won 15, Drew 14, Lost 10.

Nigel Worthington

Preceded by	Northern Ireland Captain	Succeeded by
Alan McDonald	1995 – 1996	Iain Dowie

Northern Ireland’s regular left-back for over a decade, Nigel Worthington was a consistent if unspectacular performer…

Name: Nigel Worthington
Born: 4 November 1961, Ballymena
Height: 5.11 ft
Weight: 12.08 st
Position: Left-Back/Midfield

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 66 Full Caps (1984-1997), 14 Under-18 Caps; Irish League: 1 Cap (1981).
Club Honours: (with Ballymena) Irish Cup Winner 1980/81; Ulster Cup Winner 1980/81; (with Wednesday) Football League Division Two Champion 1990/91, Runner-Up 1983/84; FA Cup Runner-Up 1992/93; Football League Cup Winner 1990/91.
Awards: Ulster Young Footballer of the Year 1981.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Europe	Other
Ballymena U.	77/78-80/81	-	Youth	*79 (-)/ 4	-	-	2(0)/0	-
Notts County	81/82-83/84	Jul-81	£100k	67 (0)/ 4	4(0)/0	11(0)/0	-	3(0)/0
Sheffield.Wed.	83/84-93/94	Feb-84	£125k	333 (4)/12	29(0)/1	41(0)/1	3(0)/1	5(0)/0
Leeds United	94/95-95/96	Jul-94	£325k	34(10)/ 1	6(1)/0	4(1)/0	-	-
Stoke City	96/97	Jul-96	Free	12 (0)/ 0	-	3(0)/1	-	-
Blackpool	97/98	Jul-97	Free	4 (5)/ 0	-	-	-	-
TOTALS	-	£550k		429(19)/21	39(1)/1	59(1)/2	5(0)/1	8(0)/0

* all games

Coaching Career:
Blackpool player-manager Jul/97 – Dec/99
England Under-21 assistant-coach
Norwich City assistant-manager Jun/00 – Dec/00; manager Dec/00 – Oct/06
Northern Ireland Under-21 assistant-coach
Leicester City caretaker-manager Apr/07-May/07
Northern Ireland manager Jun/07-Dec/11

Biography:
To follow.

Managerial Career

Northern Ireland Cap Details:

22-05-1984 Wales......... A D 1-1 BC
27-05-1984 Finland....... A L 0-1 WCQ sub
16-10-1984 Israel........ H W 3-0 FR
27-03-1985 Spain......... A D 0-0 FR sub
11-09-1985 Turkey........ A D 0-0 WCQ
16-10-1985 Romania....... A W 1-0 WCQ sub
13-11-1985 England....... A D 0-0 WCQ sub
26-03-1986 Denmark....... H D 1-1 FR
03-06-1986 Algeria....... N D 1-1 WCF
07-06-1986 Spain......... N L 1-2 WCF
15-10-1986 England....... A L 0-3 ECQ
12-11-1986 Turkey........ A D 0-0 ECQ
18-02-1987 Israel........ A D 1-1 FR
01-04-1987 England....... H L 0-2 ECQ
29-04-1987 Yugoslavia.... H L 1-2 ECQ
14-10-1987 Yugoslavia.... A L 0-3 ECQ
11-11-1987 Turkey........ H W 1-0 ECQ
17-02-1988 Greece........ A L 2-3 FR
23-03-1988 Poland........ H D 1-1 FR
27-04-1988 France........ H D 0-0 FR
21-05-1988 Malta......... H W 3-0 WCQ
14-09-1988 Rep of Ireland H D 0-0 WCQ
19-10-1988 Hungary....... A L 0-1 WCQ
21-12-1988 Spain......... A L 0-4 WCQ
26-04-1989 Malta......... A W 2-0 WCQ
06-09-1989 Hungary....... H L 1-2 WCQ
11-10-1989 Rep of Ireland A L 0-3 WCQ
18-05-1990 Uruguay ...... H W 1-0 FR
12-09-1990 Yugoslavia.... H L 0-2 ECQ
17-10-1990 Denmark....... H D 1-1 ECQ
14-11-1990 Austria....... A D 0-0 ECQ
01-05-1991 Faroe Islands. H D 1-1 ECQ
16-10-1991 Austria....... H W 2-1 ECQ
13-11-1991 Denmark....... A L 1-2 ECQ
19-02-1992 Scotland...... A L 0-1 FR
28-04-1992 Lithuania..... H D 2-2 WCQ
02-06-1992 Germany....... A D 1-1 FR
09-09-1992 Albania....... H W 3-0 WCQ
14-10-1992 Spain......... H D 0-0 WCQ
18-11-1992 Denmark....... H L 0-1 WCQ
31-03-1993 Rep of Ireland A L 0-3 WCQ
28-04-1993 Spain......... A L 1-3 WCQ
25-05-1993 Lithuania..... A W 1-0 WCQ
02-06-1993 Latvia........ A W 2-1 WCQ
08-09-1993 Latvia........ H W 2-0 WCQ
13-10-1993 Denmark....... A L 0-1 WCQ
17-11-1993 Rep of Ireland H D 1-1 WCQ
20-04-1994 Liechtenstein. H W 4-1 ECQ
03-06-1994 Colombia...... N L 0-2 FR
11-06-1994 Mexico........ N L 0-3 FR
07-09-1994 Portugal...... H L 1-2 ECQ
12-10-1994 Austria....... A W 2-1 ECQ
16-11-1994 Rep of Ireland H L 0-4 ECQ
29-03-1995 Rep of Ireland A D 1-1 ECQ
26-04-1995 Latvia........ A W 1-0 ECQ
22-05-1995 Canada........ A L 0-2 FR sub
25-05-1995 Chile......... N L 1-2 FR
07-06-1995 Latvia........ H L 1-2 ECQ
03-09-1995 Portugal...... A D 1-1 ECQ
11-10-1995 Liechtenstein. A W 4-0 ECQ
15-11-1995 Austria....... H W 5-3 ECQ
27-03-1996 Norway........ H L 0-2 FR
24-04-1996 Sweden........ H L 1-2 FR
29-05-1996 Germany....... H D 1-1 FR
22-01-1997 Italy......... A L 0-2 FR
11-02-1997 Belgium....... H W 3-0 FR sub

Summary: 60(6)/0. Won 17, Drew 21, Lost 28.

Record as Captain:

Span	First Match	Pl	W	D	L	F	A	.GD.	Win %	Pts %	W/L
1993-1997	08/09/93	10	4	2	4	17	14	3	40.0%	46.7%	0

Irish League Representative Match Details:
15-04-1981 League of Ireland A L 0-1

Summary: 1/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 1.