Star men of past glories

Andy Liddell

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A quarter of a century on from Athletic’s League Cup final appearance, the Chronicle profiles the top 25 players to have worn the famous shirt since. Chosen players will be profiled and you will get a chance to vote for your favourite after all 25.

Here are three more terrace heroes.

ANDY LIDDELL

IT WAS at the back end of an accomplished career that the Leeds-born winger arrived at Boundary Park.

Liddell was 32 then, swapping a relatively short stint at Sheffield United and previous much longer periods at first club Barnsley and then Wigan for life under manager Ronnie Moore.

The former Scotland under-21 international later stated that he nearly went elsewhere instead in the summer of 2005.

“I was ready to go to Stoke, but they had a change of manager and that’s when (Athletic coach) John Breckin got in touch about coming to Oldham,” said Liddell, ushered out at Bramall Lane in their bid to reach the top flight.

Wigan’s record scorer had an injury-interrupted first season with Athletic, hitting 11 goals to finish as second-top scorer to Luke Beckett despite being ruled out from February onwards with an Achilles complaint.

After an operation he came back strongly the following season under John Sheridan as Athletic made it into the League One play-offs. Liddell was an ever-present in league and cup, playing 54 times and again scoring 11 goals.

The following season was a disappointment as the Achilles problem flared up again, ruling out Liddell for five months.

The man with the 100 per cent record from penalties for the club — in which he used a stop-start run-up — renewed his contract for a further year before Joe Royle opted to release him at the age of 35.


NEIL ADAMS


THE PROMISE shown early in his career fulfilled by a move to Everton, former Stoke City junior Adams went on to star at Goodison in helping his new club to the First Division title in 1986-87.

While with the Toffeemen, he also picked up a first England under-21 cap before making the choice to decamp to Athletic in the summer of 1989.

Adams quickly became an expert in confounding expectations. After scoring in the 6-0 demolition of West Ham on the way to the League Cup final, the right winger played a major role in Athletic’s promotion to the top flight — and keeping the club there, too. His five seasons were among the club’s finest ever and Adams was to the fore in that period at Boundary Park.

His most famous moment in a blue shirt was arguably the match-winning strike against Manchester United.

As Craig Fleming kept promising young winger Ryan Giggs quiet at one end in March, 1993,

in-form Adams netted the only goal of the game to see off the Old Trafford outfit at Boundary Park.

Other crucial goals arrived against Liverpool, Everton — at Goodison he scored twice in the final three minutes to earn a draw from a hopeless position — and Chelsea, before he made a move to Norwich City for a fee of £250,000 in February, 1994.

Adams went on to carve out a career as a coach, leading Norwich to FA Youth Cup final success in 2013 and spending a short time in the top job at Carrow Road.


PAUL BERNARD


AS AN 18-year-old pup, talented youth team product Bernard had only just made his debut against Middlesbrough by the time he was called upon to feature in one of the biggest games in Athletic’s history.

The midfielder made quite an impact, too, netted Athletic’s second goal as his side game from 2-0 down to see off Sheffield Wednesday and claim the Second Division title.

“The ball hit Carlton Palmer and fell to me so I just hit it,” Bernard later said of his deflected equaliser.

“When I saw it go in I didn’t know what to do. I ran to the Chaddy End and the fans invaded the pitch. It was unbelievable.”

First spotted playing for Stockport boys in 1983, when aged only 10, Bernard grew in stature and reputation after his stellar introduction to the professional game.

He established himself as a success in the top flight and in his final season at Boundary Park, scored six goals in 43 appearances as Athletic suffered relegation.

In September, 1995, he moved north of the border to Aberdeen in an £800,000 deal — equalling the Scottish transfer record — in order to further his ambitions.

In total, he played 119 times for Athletic, scoring 19 goals.

Born in Edinburgh and raised in Stockport from the age of three, Bernard went on to claim two full Scotland caps.




::The candidates so far: Jose Baxter, Rick Holden, Sean Gregan, Ian Marshall, Neil Redfearn, John Sheridan, Nick Henry, Mike Milligan, Chris Taylor, David

Eyres, Lee Richardson, Richie Wellens, Carl Winchester, Gunnar Halle, Kieran Lee, Gary Kelly, Paul Gerrard, Andy Liddell, Neil Adams, Paul Bernard.