Charles Richard Gough (born in Stockholm, Sweden, 5 April 1962) is a former Scottish football central defender who enjoyed great success as captain of Rangers. He also played for Scotland 61 times and had a brief spell as manager of Livingston. He is now resident in San Diego.

Playing career[link]

Club[link]

Early career[link]

Born to a Scottish father (former Charlton Athletic player Charlie Gough) and Swedish mother, Gough grew up in South Africa, Went to school at King Edward VII and began his career playing with the Wits University club. Looking to build a career in British football, Gough went on trial to Rangers, but was turned down. After that had a spell with University College Dublin After leaving Ireland to return South Africa, he was signed by Scottish Premier Division team Dundee United in 1980.

First spell in Scotland[link]

He played for Dundee United for six seasons, finishing with 23 goals in 165 appearances and helping them to the League title in 1982-83. In 1986, Gough was sold to English First Division club Tottenham Hotspur for £750,000, where he played for slightly over a year, and captained the Tottenham team which lost to Coventry City in the 1987 FA Cup Final. Although there was no doubt over his talent, Gough began to feel homesick and, early in the 1987-88 season, returned to Scotland, joining Rangers and becoming the first Scottish player to be signed for over £1,000,000. His debut was at Tannadice in a defeat against former club Dundee United. Gough remained at Ibrox until 1997, captaining the side that achieved nine consecutive League titles. He was quoted as being "very proud to be the only Rangers player to receive 9 medals".^[1] Both Ally McCoist and Ian Ferguson however also received 9 league champions medals during the "9 in a row" run of title wins.

MLS[link]

In 1997, Gough left the United Kingdom to play in the United States' nascent professional league, Major League Soccer. Gough remained in the league for two seasons, the first with the Kansas City Wizards, the second with the San Jose Clash; although Gough only played intermittently in those two seasons, totalling 2 goals and 2 assists in only 36 games, he was named to the MLS Best XI for his 1997 season with the Wizards.

Gough returned to Rangers after the 1997 MLS season, and played with the club for one more season. In all, he played 318 league games with Rangers, scoring 26 goals.

Everton[link]

After leaving Rangers he linked up with former boss Walter Smith at Everton. He played two seasons at Goodison Park making 38 appearances and scoring once against Southampton.^[2] During his time at Everton he was made captain on several occasions.

He also had a brief stint with Nottingham Forest.

Northern Spirit[link]

Gough joined Rangers' feeder club Northern Spirit to begin a coaching career in Australia.^[3] He was later registered to play two matches for the club against Parramatta Power and Australian Newcastle United, his last appearances as a professional footballer.^[4]

International[link]

Gough was also a regular in the Scotland national team in the 1980s. He made his debut against Switzerland in 1983, and went on to gain 61 caps. His international career was ended prematurely, however, after he was critical of coaches Andy Roxburgh and Craig Brown and withdrew himself from further selection.

Managerial career[link]

On 30 November 2004 Gough landed his first managerial job with Scottish Premier League team Livingston. He resigned in May 2005 after saving the club from relegation, having wrangled with the club's owner over the budget for signing players.^[5] The club was fined £15,000 by the SFA for a breach of transfer regulations over the signing of Hassan Kachloul during Gough's time as manager^[6] although there is no suggestion that Gough himself was responsible for the breach of regulations.

Career statistics[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Richard Gough at scottishfa.co.uk

Richard Gough - Navigation boxes and awards v t e SPFA Players' Player of the Year 1978: Johnstone 1979: Hegarty 1980: Provan 1981: McGhee 1982: Clark 1983: Nicholas 1984: Miller 1985: Duffy 1986: Gough 1987: McClair 1988: McStay 1989: Snelders 1990: Bett 1991: Elliott 1992: McCoist 1993: Goram 1994: Hateley 1995: Laudrup 1996: Gascoigne 1997: Di Canio 1998: McNamara 1999: Larsson 2000: Viduka 2001: Larsson 2002: Amoruso 2003: Ferguson 2004: Sutton 2005: Hartson / Ricksen 2006: Maloney 2007: Nakamura 2008: McGeady 2009: Brown 2010: Davis 2011: Izaguirre 2012: Mulgrew v t e SFWA Footballer of the Year 1965: McNeill 1966: Greig 1967: Simpson 1968: Wallace 1969: Murdoch 1970: Stanton 1971: Buchan 1972: Smith 1973: Connelly 1974: Scotland 1975: Jardine 1976: Greig 1977: McGrain 1978: Johnstone 1979: Ritchie 1980: Strachan 1981: Rough 1982: Sturrock 1983: Nicholas 1984: Miller 1985: McAlpine 1986: Jardine 1987: McClair 1988: McStay 1989: Gough 1990: McLeish 1991: Malpas 1992: McCoist 1993: Goram 1994: Hateley 1995: Laudrup 1996: Gascoigne 1997: Laudrup 1998: Burley 1999: Larsson 2000: Ferguson 2001: Larsson 2002: Lambert 2003: Ferguson 2004: McNamara 2005: Hartson 2006: Gordon 2007: Nakamura 2008: Cuéllar 2009: Caldwell 2010: Weir 2011: Izaguirre 2012: Mulgrew v t e Scotland squad – 1986 FIFA World Cup 1 Leighton 2 Gough 3 Malpas 4 Souness (c) 5 McLeish 6 Miller 7 Strachan 8 Aitken 9 Bannon 10 Bett 11 McStay 12 Goram 13 Nicol 14 Narey 15 Albiston 16 McAvennie 17 Archibald 18 Sharp 19 Nicholas 20 Sturrock 21 Cooper 22 Rough Coach: Ferguson v t e Scotland squad – 1990 FIFA World Cup 1 Leighton 2 McLeish 3 Aitken (c) 4 Gough 5 McStay 6 Malpas 7 Johnston 8 Bett 9 McCoist 10 MacLeod 11 Gillespie 12 Goram 13 Durie 14 McInally 15 Levein 16 McCall 17 McKimmie 18 Collins 19 McPherson 20 McAllister 21 Fleck 22 Gunn Coach: Roxburgh v t e Scotland squad – UEFA Euro 1992 1 Goram 2 Gough (c) 3 McStay 4 Malpas 5 McCoist 6 McClair 7 Durie 8 McPherson 9 McKimmie 10 McCall 11 McAllister 12 Smith 13 Nevin 14 Gallacher 15 Boyd 16 McInally 17 Whyte 18 Bowman 19 McLaren 20 Ferguson Coach: Roxburgh v t e Livingston F.C. – managers Bain (1974–76) Ness (1976–78) MacFarlane (1978–80) Christie (1980–92) Park (1992–93) Brownlie (1993–94) Lawson (1994–95) Leishman (1995–97) Stewart (1997–2000) Leishman (2000–03) Máximo (2003) Hay (2003–04) Preston (2004) Gough (2004–05) Lambert (2005–06) Cleland (2006) Robertson (2006–07) Proctor (2007–08) Landi (2008) Hegarty (2008–09) Murphy (2009) Bollan (2009–12) Hughes (2012–)

Duncan Ferguson

Ferguson in 1994, during his Rangers days
Personal information
Full name	Duncan Cowan Ferguson[1]
Date of birth	(1971-12-27) 27 December 1971 (age 40)
Place of birth	Stirling, Scotland
Height	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Playing position	Striker
Youth career
1989–1990	Carse Thistle
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1990–1993	Dundee United	77	(28)
1993–1994	Rangers	14	(2)
1994	→ Everton (loan)	9	(2)
1994–1998	Everton	107	(35)
1999–2000	Newcastle United	30	(8)
2000–2006	Everton	123	(25)
Total		360	(100)
National team‡
1992–1997	Scotland	7	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 12:40, 20 February 2010 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12:40, 20 February 2010 (UTC)

Duncan Cowan Ferguson (born 27 December 1971) is a Scottish former footballer. He was notorious for his "hardman" image^[2] and nicknamed "Big Dunc"^[3] and "Duncan Disorderly".^[4]

Ferguson began his football career at Carse Thistle before being signed by Dundee United in 1990 on his first professional contract. He moved to Rangers in 1993 for a then British transfer record of £4 million. He spent the remainder of his career in England with two spells at Everton (1994 to 1998 and 2000 to 2006) and Newcastle United between 1998 and 2000. Ferguson retired from football in 2006.

During his career, Ferguson won the FA Cup with Everton in 1995, competed in the qualifying stages of the UEFA Champions League in 2005, also with Everton, and participated in the UEFA Cup in 1999 with Newcastle and 2005 with Everton. He was capped for Scotland seven times but made himself unavailable for selection in his national team due to a dispute with the Scottish Football Association.^[5] He has scored more goals than any other Scottish player in the FA Premier League.^[6] Ferguson was noted for his aggressive and highly-competitive style of play, which resulted in nine red cards and a three-month prison sentence following an on field assault of Raith Rovers' John McStay in 1994.

Club career[link]

Dundee United[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2011)

Born in Stirling, Ferguson made his professional debut for Dundee United against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium on 10 November 1990. He scored one goal in the league that season against Dunfermline Athletic in March 1991. He achieved greater impact in the Scottish Cup that season, scoring three goals in five matches and helping Dundee United to reach the final. Once there, they lost to Motherwell, 4–3 after extra time.

The following season saw him become a first team regular, with 41 appearances and 16 goals he became the clubs top scorer. His good form continued in 1992–93 with 33 appearances and 15 goals. The form he displayed at Dundee United also saw him win a call up to the Scottish national team. Ferguson accrued four caps during 1992 and 1993, playing in three friendlies and one European Football Championship match. These outings yielded no goals for the striker.

Rangers[link]

Ferguson's form at Dundee United attracted the interest of several clubs. Walter Smith signed Ferguson for Rangers in July 1993, for a then British transfer record fee of £4 million. Smith had begun his managerial career at Dundee United under Jim McLean, just as Ferguson had begun his professional playing career. Soon after Smith left Dundee United to assist Graeme Souness at Rangers, where he eventually took over the managerial role in 1991. The paths of Ferguson and Smith were to cross numerous times from this point.

Ferguson made little impact at Rangers, coupling indifferent displays and persistent injury woes. He played twenty-three games and scored five goals. He was also played out of position by Smith, often as a left winger and on one occasion even as a left back in a match against Levski Sofia.

In the 1993–94 season, Ferguson played 16 games but only scored once, in a 4–0 defeat of Raith Rovers. It was in this game that Ferguson headbutted the visitors' John McStay in the south-west corner of the Ibrox pitch. Referee Kenny Clark and his linesmen missed the incident, hence Ferguson avoided a dismissal, but he was subsequently charged with assault and, as it was his fourth such conviction, he received a three-month prison sentence in 1995, by which time he had left the club.^[7]

In contrast, season 1994–95 saw Ferguson start in fine form. Gary Pallister and David May of Manchester United endured a torrid time in a pre–season friendly. This was followed by a last–minute winner against Motherwell, from a Brian Laudrup assist on the first game of the season.^[8] Four days later, Ferguson scored a hat–trick in a 6–1 win over Arbroath.^[9] The next match saw Ferguson pressure a Partick Thistle player into scoring an own goal, leading to a 2–0 win for Rangers.^{[citation needed]}

A Champions League qualifier against AEK Athens left Rangers 2–0 down after the first leg.^[10] Smith elected to play a partnership of Ferguson and Mark Hateley up front, in an effort to overcome the deficit. The two players were poorly suited to playing alongside each other; they often ended up competing for the same ball. Despite Ferguson having outscored Hateley in the first five games of the season, Smith decided to drop Ferguson in favour of Gordon Durie.

Everton[link]

In October 1994, Everton were struggling under the management of Mike Walker and looking for options to reinvigorate their faltering season. The solution enacted was to take two Rangers players on loan–deal, Ian Durrant for one month and Ferguson for three.^[11]

The deal failed to secure Walker’s tenure, and saw the managerial role handed to Joe Royle in November. Royle decided to let Durrant return north to Rangers but then signed Ferguson permanently in a £4 million deal — making him Everton's record signing after a string of dominating performances including goals against Liverpool, Leeds Utd and Sheffield Wednesday.

While still on loan, Ferguson contributed a goal in the 2–0 Merseyside derby victory at Goodison Park on 21 November 1994 giving him almost cult like status with the Evertonians, who are always desperate to beat their neighbours..^{[citation needed]}

Ferguson also helped Everton progress to the semi–final stage of the 1995 FA Cup. Despite recovering from an injury at the time, he was given a substitute appearance in the final against Manchester United, a game that saw Everton victorious and provided Ferguson with the only honour of his career in a 1–0 result. Ferguson was described by Joe Royle as 'the biggest thing since Dixie' in reference to Ferguson's iconic status with the Evertonians, and in comparison to Everton's all time record scorer Dixie Dean

The subsequent, 1995–96 season was less successful for Ferguson. A persistent hernia problem caused him to be unavailable for large amounts of time. He was also jailed in September 1995, for an incident in Scotland were he headbutted an opposition player. Manager Joe Royle was less than happy, stating that the club were strongly advised there was little chance of Ferguson being imprisoned upon signing him. Ferguson was released in November 1995, and played an important role in the second half of the season with important goals and performances as the toffee's climbed to 6th position in the league.^[12]

From here, Ferguson continued to be the focal point of Everton’s attack. In the 1996–97 season, he helped maintain the club’s top-flight status but also suffered another injury setback, this time requiring surgery on his knee. He started the season in blistering form, with a man of the match display against Alan Shearer's Newcastle United on the opening day, and a brace at Old Trafford 4 days later in a 2-2 draw with Man Utd.Howard Kendall returned to manage the club in the 1997–98 season, and decided that season to reward Ferguson with the captaincy of the team. It was during this season that Ferguson removed himself from contention for the Scottish national team after believing they did very little to protect him from his earlier prison sentence.

After Everton were almost relegated during the 1997–98 season, Kendall made way for Walter Smith, reuniting Ferguson with his Rangers manager. Smith maintained the strategy of bypassing the midfield and instead lofting the ball straight to Ferguson which at times did see some success, but iritated some players and fans who preferred to play football on the floor.^{[citation needed]}

Ferguson was controversially sold to Newcastle United for a fee of £8 million in November 1998.^[13] The deal was done to sell Ferguson by the Everton chairman, Peter Johnson, without the knowledge of Walter Smith. Ferguson wrote a 2 page goodbye letter in the club magazine to fans, stating his sadness at leaving and that he would never forget them.^[14]

Newcastle United[link]

Upon bringing Ferguson to Newcastle, team manager Ruud Gullit was swiftly rewarded. Ferguson scored twice on his debut against Wimbledon in the Premier League. The final result was a 3–1 victory to Newcastle and the tantalising prospect of Ferguson and Alan Shearer forming a formidable strike partnership.

Though it was not to be; Ferguson again found himself struck down by injury and appeared only seven times for Newcastle during the 1998–99 season. He did however make a substitute appearance in the 1999 FA Cup Final. His extended absence lasted from late December until April and curbed the early promise of his Tyneside career. Likewise, the first half of 1999–2000 brought more misfortune for Ferguson.

Injury would once again hinder Ferguson’s career and he was unable to participate in the final seven league matches of the season. These injury woes made his position at Newcastle untenable and he was eventually sold back to Everton by Bobby Robson for £3.75 million; almost half the price he was bought for from Everton two seasons earlier. His final appearance came in the FA Cup semi-final defeat to eventual winners Chelsea.

Return To Everton[link]

Ferguson re-joined Everton on the eve of the 2000-2001 season, after Everton with money to spend from player sales made a dramatic bid under new owner Bill Kenwright to bring Ferguson back. After weeks of negotiations with Newcastle Utd, Ferguson waived his sell on payment to seal a move back to his beloved blues and was paraded to hundreds of joyous fans outside the clubs stadium . Ferguson’s return to Goodison Park brought no change to his injury problems. Just two games into his second spell at Everton, he was injured. Regardless, he managed to participate in 13 Premier League games during the 2000–01 season and provided a crucial six goals in that time. This was enough to justify the return and once again keep Everton from relegation, though 16th place was their lowest under Walter Smith and fears were rife that 2001–02 would see Everton relegated. Ferguson's goal in the merseyside derby at goodison park saw him celebrate by showing his Everton tattoo to the travelling Liverpool fans much to their anger.

The next two seasons were largely anonymous for Ferguson with the player battling to recover from his sciatica and rediscover his best form, hardly helped by his advancing years. 2001-2002 seen Ferguson start brightly upfront in a partnership with Kevin Campbell, however he was out the side with a back injury until March 2002, when new manager David Moyes gave Ferguson the captains arm band once again in an attempt to get the best out of him in the very imporant run in. Ferguson responded by playing through the pain barrier and scoring 4 goals in the final 8 games, but his season was cut short when he was sent off for punching Bolton's Bo Hansen during Everton's 3-1 win in April 2002. Ferguson went under the knife in October 2002 after only playing 1 of Everton's 1st 10 games, a sub appearance against Wrexham in the league cup in an attempt to cure a long standing nerve problem in his back. He returned in April 2003 but figured just 7 times off the bench with a return of 0 goals. Once in his early thirties and participating in the 2003–04 season, Ferguson again started to add value to the Everton team but he was eclipsed by the emergence of Wayne Rooney. He was once again club captain and stayed relatively injury free, scoring goals as Everton once again avoided releagtion. He did however miss 2 months of the season after being sent home from training following a brawl with manager David Moyes.

During the 2004–05 season, manager David Moyes began to utilise Ferguson effectively as a substitute. With 1 year left on his contract, and rumours that he would be released at the end of the campain, the striker’s contribution from the bench was pivotal in Everton’s campaign that season and his tally of five league goals helped lift Everton to a fourth–placed finish. A particular highlight was his match–winning goal against Manchester United, reminiscent of ten years prior when Ferguson scored against the same team to give Everton victory. The intervening period had seen Manchester United unbeaten by Everton in the league. By this stage, Wayne Rooney had been sold to Manchester United, but Everton had still managed to finish fourth in the final table - their highest yet in the Premier League and their highest finish overall in 17 years. Ferguson was rewarded with a one year deal at the end of the campaign, despite attempts to bring in further forwards such as Michael Owen, Craig Bellamy and Milan Baros.

The 2005–06 season saw Ferguson regain the number 9 shirt - the number he has tattooed inside the Everton crest on his left upper arm. However, the 2005-2006 season was somewhat less fruitful for Ferguson with goals proving elusive and frustration dominating his displays, the latter factor reaching a head when Ferguson inadvertently headed the ball into his own net during Everton's 1-0 home defeat to Portsmouth in September 2005, a result which briefly dropped the team to the foot of the table.

Ferguson’s low point of the 2005–06 season was his sending off against Wigan Athletic for violent conduct. His confrontation with Paul Scharner and subsequent fracas with Pascal Chimbonda resulted in a total match–ban of seven games and saw Ferguson’s Premier League red–card count reach eight, equalling Patrick Vieira’s record. Scharner later claimed that he had sworn at Ferguson in his native language and that the Everton man's punch "was a nice punch".^[15]

On 7 May 2006, against West Bromwich Albion at Goodison Park, Ferguson was named captain in the game that marked the end of his Everton career. His 90th minute penalty kick was saved by Tomasz Kuszczak, but he subsequently scored from the rebound, netting his final goal for the club. Towards the end of his career he got a reputation as the hardman of the English game. Ferguson was not given a new Everton deal and retired, moving his family to Mallorca and spuring advances from a number of clubs.^[16]

Personal[link]

Burglary attempt[link]

In 2001, Ferguson was the victim of a burglary attempt by two men at his then home in Formby, Liverpool. Ferguson confronted the pair and was able to detain one of them who subsequently spent three days in hospital.^[17] The second man managed to flee but was eventually caught. Both men were sentenced to fifteen months imprisonment for their actions.

Gaol[link]

Ferguson has had four convictions for assault - two arising from taxi–rank scuffles,^[18] one an altercation with a fisherman in an Anstruther pub^[18] and the most infamous: his on–field headbutt on Raith Rovers defender John McStay in 1994 while playing for Rangers, which resulted in a three-month prison sentence. The first incident led to a £100 fine for butting a policeman (was fined a further £25 for a Breach of the Peace),^[19] while the second resulted in a £200 fine for punching and kicking a supporter on crutches. He had been put on a year's probation for the third offence.^[20]

Campaigning[link]

Ferguson has pledged his support to the "Keep Everton in Our City" campaign, making a rare public statement:

Coaching[link]

In October 2011 Ferguson joined former club Everton, coaching the youth teams in an unofficial capacity, as he prepared to take his coaching qualifications. Not formally an employee, he is currently assisting Alan Irvine, the club's academy manager.^[22]

Statistics[link]

All figures correct as of 07:47, 27 December 2006 (UTC)

Club performance[link]

International appearances[link]

Ferguson refused international selection after 1997, in part in protest against his treatment by the SFA after his conviction for assault on John McStay, particularly the imposition of a 12-game ban on top of his 3-month prison sentence.^[23]

Honours[link]

Everton[link]

• FA Cup: 1

1994-95

Rangers[link]

• Scottish Premier League

1993–94

References[link]

References for statistics[link]

• Statistics from BBC Sport
• Statistics from Guardian Unlimited
• Duncan Ferguson at scottishfa.co.uk
• Statistics from Sky Sports
• Duncan Ferguson career stats at Soccerbase
• Statistics from Yahoo! Sport

External links[link]

• Profile by 4thegame
• Profile by Born To Be Blue
• Profile by ESPN Soccernet
• Profile by Football Database
• Profile by Glenrothes Arabs
• Profile by icLiverpool
• Profile by Nil Satis Nisi Optimum
• Profile by ToffeeWeb
• Duncan Ferguson at the Internet Movie Database

v t e Scotland squad – UEFA Euro 1992 1 Goram 2 Gough (c) 3 McStay 4 Malpas 5 McCoist 6 McClair 7 Durie 8 McPherson 9 McKimmie 10 McCall 11 McAllister 12 Smith 13 Nevin 14 Gallacher 15 Boyd 16 McInally 17 Whyte 18 Bowman 19 McLaren 20 Ferguson Coach: Roxburgh