Craig JOHNSTON | 1985-1986 | PES Stats Database (Golden Era Backup)

JOHNSTON PES STATS | 1985-1986

electric_trigger Club: Liverpool Number: 8 Position: SMF*, WF, AM, Nationality: Australian/English Era: 1985-1986, aged 25 Craig JOHNSTON | 1985-1986 Foot: R Side: B Length: ? Weight: ? Attack: 79 Defence: 55 Balance: 75 Stamina: 85 Top Speed: 86 Acceleration: 86 Response: 82 Agility: 84 Dribble Accuracy: 84 Dribble Speed: 88 Short Pass Accuracy: 84 Short Pass Speed: 85 Long Pass Acc.: 84 Long Pass Speed: 83 Shot Accuracy: 77 Shot Power: 84 Shot Technique: 77 Free Kick Accuracy: 80 Curling: 79 Header: 75 Jump: 77 Technique: 81 Aggression: 85 Mentality: 85 Keeper Skills: 50 Team Work: 82 Injury Tolerance: B Condition/Fitness: 6 Weak Foot Accuracy: 5 Weak Foot frequency: 5 Special Side* Dribbling* Positioning* Reaction* Craig Johnston (born 25 June 1960 in Johannesburg, South Africa) is a former football (soccer) player who became arguably the first Australian to make a major impact in the English game. Career highlights He was offered a youth contract by Jack Charlton at Middlesborough and after the trial proved successful and then made his first-team debut against Everton while still a teenager, his league debut came on the 4 February 1978 in a 2-1 victory over Birmingham City at St Andrews, his first goal also came in '78 in the 2-1 league defeat to West Ham United at Ayresome Park. On the 3 April 1981, aged 20, Johnston was bought by Liverpool manager Bob Paisley for £650,000, he had played just 64 league games for Middlesbrough, scoring 16 goals in a four-season period. Craig made his debut on the 29 August 1981 coming on as a 72nd minute sub for Ray Kennedy in the 1-0 league defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux; also making their debuts were Mark Lawrenson and Bruce Grobbelaar. Johnston's first start came in the prestigious World Club Championship fixture against Brazilian side Flamengo, Flamengo, who included Zico amongst their ranks, took advantage of their long acclimatization and preparation by beating Liverpool 3-0 at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. He scored his first goal for Liverpool on 8 December 1981 at Anfield against Arsenal during a League Cup 4th round replay, Johnston, again a 72nd minute sub, opened the scoring in the 5th minute of extra time as the Reds went on to finish off the Gunners by a 3-0 scoreline Though Johnston, known as Skippy, was a crowd favourite at Anfield during his long spell with the club, he was never a regular in the side, with his versatility in midfield and as a striker counting against him. His managers - Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny Dalglish - often kept him in reserve owing to the specialists in those positions available to them. That said, Johnston settled down on Merseyside and won the League championship in 1982 (though missed out on the League Cup success the same year) and then played in the side which retained both of those trophies the next year. In 1984, he was part of the team which won a treble of League championship, League Cup and European Cup; two years later he was an integral part of the side which won only the third League championship and FA Cup double of the 20th century. In the FA Cup final at Wembley, Liverpool were trailing 1-0 at half time to Everton but came back to win 3-1. Ian Rush scored the first goal though Johnston tried to steal it, sliding in to touch the ball as it crossed the goal line. However, just six minutes later, Johnston had a goal to call his own as he tapped home a cross from Jan Mølby. Rush then sealed the win with a late third. Johnston continued to flit in and out of the team over the next two years, and became a cult figure at Anfield[citation needed], with his flowing, corkscrew locks and flamboyant dress sense. In 1988, he was a frequent substitute and occasional starter as Liverpool coasted to the League title and reached the FA Cup final, aiming to complete a second ''double''. Johnston, ever the man for keeping an eye on fads, wrote the club's traditional Cup final song called Anfield Rap which combined pro-Liverpool lyrics with the rap and house trends of the time. The other Liverpool players took part graciously in both song and video - indeed, John Barnes proved so proficient at rapping that he got a similar role in ''World in Motion'', the England song for the World Cup two years later. The record got to No.3 in the UK charts. Johnston never played international football for either South Africa or Australia, perhaps surprisingly for the latter, but did represent England at under-21 and 'B' team level. He was, however, as surprised as he was delighted when he got a call-up for the full England squad in 1988. He qualified for England through his British passport and long-time residency. However, he never got into the team and ended up with no full international caps at all. At the age of 17 he memorably described playing football for Australia as ''Like surfing for England.'' Retirement After 270 appearances and 40 goals and just days before the 1988 FA Cup final at Wembley against Wimbledon, Johnston incurred his manager's wrath when he announced his premature retirement from Liverpool. Dalglish was livid but later relented and gave his blessing to Johnston when he found out the reason for the player's decision. Craig JOHNSTON | 1985-1986 | PES Stats Database (Golden Era Backup)