Andy McAteer

Football player infobox


playername= Andy McAteer
fullname = Andrew William McAteer
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1961|04|24
cityofbirth = Preston
countryofbirth = England
height = 5'10"
currentclub =
position = Full back
youthyears = 1977-1979
youthclubs = Preston North End
years = 1979-1986
1986-1988
1988-1989
1989
clubs = Preston North End
Blackpool
Preston North End
Lancaster City
Total
caps(goals) = 237 00(8)
041 00(1)
013 00(1)
00? 00(?)
291 0(10)
nationalyears =
nationalteam =
nationalcaps(goals) =
pcupdate = March 19, 2007

Andrew William McAteer (born April 24 1961 in Preston, Lancashire) is an English former professional footballer. He played in the Football League in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s.

Preston North End

Signing on as an apprentice in July 1977, McAteer turned professional a year later. He made his Preston North End debut as an 18-year-old on Boxing Day 1979 in a 3-0 home win over Shrewsbury Town. Quickly establishing himself as a tough-tackling attacking full back, McAteer didn't miss a game for the rest of the season, becoming a firm favourite with the Deepdale fans. The following season he struggled with injury but still managed to make 26 appearances as the club were relegated to Division Three. These were hard times for Preston, as they constantly struggled against relegation and financial ruin. McAteer, however, was a mainstay in the team making 277 appearances scoring nine goals during his first spell there.

Blackpool

It was in December 1986 that John McGrath accepted a bid of £17,000 from local rivals Blackpool.

McAteer played for the Seasiders for eighteen months. In June 1988 he was given a free transfer, mainly due to an injury-plagued second season. He had made 47 appearances and scored 0 times at Bloomfield Road.

Back home

John McGrath wasted no time in offering McAteer a return to Preston, offering him, in July 1988, a two-year deal. Injury, however, restricted him to just 19 more games for North End as they pushed towards the play-offs. Halfway through his deal it was decided that McAteer couldn't continue with the rigours of the full-time game any longer and he retired from the professional game at the relatively young age of 28. He had played 343 games in his career, scoring 10 goals.

Life in the non-league

Upon leaving the full-time game, McAteer first signed, along with Oshor Williams, for Northern Premier League team Lancaster City, but new work commitments meant that he would only play one game for the Giant Axe club; therefore, he had to give up non-league football too. McAteer decided to revert to playing local parks football in his native Preston whilst building up a successful career in insurance, as he still does to this day.