CENTRAL defender Keith McPherson made just one top division appearance for West Ham’s first team but went on to have a lengthy professional career, with a swansong at Brighton & Hove Albion.
Born of Jamaican parents in Greenwich on 11 September 1963, McPherson signed as an apprentice for the Hammers in 1980 and was a member of the FA Youth Cup winning side in 1981 (they beat Spurs 2-1 over two legs).
It was only the second time in the club’s history they had won the trophy and the excellent theyflysohigh.co.uk faithfully records the details on its website; headlined by the fact young Paul Allen had played in the Hammers FA Cup winning side the year before but was still eligible to play for the youth team.
McPherson’s single first team appearance came at home to Liverpool on 20 May 1985, the last game of the season, which finished 3-0 to the visitors.
Unable to break through again, he had an 11-game loan spell with Cambridge United before a fee of £15,000 took him to Northampton Town in January 1986. He went on to play 216 times for the Cobblers over the next four and a half years.
In the summer of 1990, he joined then First Division Reading where he played for nine years.
Royals’ manager Ian Porterfield signed him having been impressed when the defender scored twice against Reading in previous visits to Elm Park.
McPherson was a regular at the heart of the Royals defence at Elm Park and the Madejski Stadium, and was a key part of the Mark McGhee side that won the Division 2 Championship in 1994.
After spending nine years at Reading, many as captain, and making 317 league and cup appearances, he joined the Albion at the age of 35 shortly before the March transfer deadline in 1999 as beleaguered manager Jeff Wood tried to shore up the centre of a defence which had been leaking goals at an alarming rate.
He made his debut in a hard-fought 0-0 draw away to relegation-threatened Hartlepool which registered Albion’s first point for seven games and first clean sheet since the start of November.
The game also saw Wood give debuts to another experienced defender in former Swindon full-back Phil King together with young Charlton loanee Lee Doherty.
With Albion up against it in the league, McPherson even played with a broken nose, manager Wood telling the Argus: “He is happy to play. It doesn’t affect his breathing and his nose is not the prettiest anyway.
“He is very important to us. I brought him in for his experience and if he didn’t play it would weaken us considerably.”
Before the season was out, the experienced defender had played 10 games under three managers and ended up as captain!
Caretaker manager Martin Hinshelwood handed him the armband for his one match in charge, at Plymouth, and McPherson carried on as captain when Micky Adams took over as manager for the final five fixtures.
One of Adams’ first moves once the season had ended was to secure McPherson’s signature for the following season. Adams told the Argus: “Keith is an older and experienced professional who has still got a bit of life in him.”
For the veteran defender, it was all something of a whirlwind. He said: “It has been very eventful. Jeff brought me down and when the chairman decided he had to go that made my position precarious. When something like that happens, all you can do is play well.”
He continued: “I’m delighted. Micky Adams must have liked what he has seen.”
Having helped Reading to promotion from the old Fourth Division in 1987, McPherson pointed out: “I know all about the hustle and bustle at this level. It’s a matter of being organised. The gaffer has made it clear he wants promotion, which is good for the club and the fans.
“We are going to be playing back in Brighton next season and he wants winners.”
McPherson went on to play 25 times that season but, having turned 36, it was his last season in a professional career that saw him play more than 500 games.
The emergence of Danny Cullip curtailed his appearances but, when released on a free transfer at the end of the season, together with Warren Aspinall, Adams said: “The door is not closed on them. They have been good lads, model pros.
“They have done well for us this season, but their appearances have been restricted because of other people’s good form.”
When McPherson decided to move to non-league Slough Town to wind down his playing days, Adams told the Argus: “We are sorry to see him go. He is a good pro who always works hard and tries his best.”
After 75 appearances for Slough, McPherson went back to Reading as a coach.
According to getreading.co.uk, he now lives in Surrey and does computing at a private school.
Pictures: various online sources, and Albion matchday programmes.
Owusu scored 76 goals in two spells with the Bees, and, in the 1998-99 season, his 24 goals in 53 games in all competitions saw him lead the scoring charts in Nationwide Division Three (now Football League Two) with Brentford crowned champions.
In parallel lines 