ON THIS DAY: 23 January – Club record transfer
Looking back to the 23 January, 1974 when Reds were involved in a club record transfer…….
Ian McDonald’s Workington career was relatively short – 45 games straddling two seasons – but such was his form and potential that he left the club on this day to sign for Liverpool.
Ian joined Reds for the latter part of the ’72-73 season from hometown club, Barrow, who had lost their Football League status a few months earlier. He made his Workington debut in a home match against Hartlepool in February and would feature in every game until his transfer the following January.
He scored in his final match, a 5-2 home win over Darlington, and was transferred to the Liverpool Reds for a fee believed to be in the region of £33,000. There was speculation about the exact amount with several figures between £25k and £35k quoted at the time.
Macca never made the first team with Liverpool and an appearance in the Mersey derby v. Everton at Anfield and a run out at Old Trafford v. Manchester United were just two of many games he played in the old Central League.
An injury early in his Liverpool career didn’t help but after his time there he played for Colchester United, Mansfield Town, York City and Aldershot amassing over 650 League appearances in the process.
Ian’s transfer certainly helped keep the club in business – the policy was very much sell to survive in those days.
-
- Macca returned to manage the club for the second half of the 2013-14 season.
Reds most recent outing on this day was back in 2016 – a straightforward 3-0 Evo-Stik Premier Division win against mid-table Halesowen Town. An own-goal had gifted us the lead but two crackers from Gareth Arnison and Conor Tinnion secured the points which kept us in 3rd position.
