An Interview With…Steve Cherry
As a young goalkeeper, who were your goalkeeping heroes and why?
My two goalkeeping heroes were Gordon Banks and Peter Shilton. They were two of the greatest goalkeepers and followed each other at Leicester City. They both wore Puma boots like me!
Gordon Banks
At your first club Derby County, you played in a game against Fulham in the last game of the 1982/83 season. This game is still talked about now as some of the Derby fans ran n the pitch causing the game to finish early. Fulham could have been promoted to the First Division if they had won the game but it never finished. What are your views of the incident? Do you think that the game should have been replayed?
No the game should not have been replayed. It was farcical that the police and stewards opened the gates to let the fans onto the edge of the pitch. Looking back on it now, it’s quite funny.
You moved to Notts County, your hometown club in 1988 where you had the most successful part of your career. How did it feel when Neil Warnock called you and asked if you wanted to join County?
It was amazing, just like winning the lottery. It really was a dream come true.
Notts County fans still rave about your performance in an FA Cup Fifth Round tie against Manchester City in 1991. What are your memories of that game?
The match was a typical FA Cup game with a lot of luck going our way. We played well on the day and the underdogs won (Notts County).
After beating Manchester City, you played Tottenham at White Hart Lane in the Sixth Round. County took the lead but lost 2-1. What are your memories of this game?
It was very disappointing to lose, especially after taking the lead in the game. Tottenham’s first goal was an own goal and their second goal was scored by a player that should have been sent off earlier on in the game.
In your career, you played in three play-off finals at Wembley. Were they the best games of your career?
I played in three Wembley Finals and won them all. One of them was for Plymouth and two were for Notts County. They were definitely up there as some of the best games and gave me a real sense of achievement.
You were part of the Notts County team who won successive promotions from the Third Division up to the First Division. What was the secret to the success of that team?
We all worked together and were great mates. We had great camaraderie.
You played in all four divisions over the course of your career, which one was the toughest to play in?
I’d say that the hardest league to play in was the Fourth Division.
Neil Warnock is known for being a bit of a character in the game. What was it like to play for him? Have you got any funny stories to tell about him?
Neil Warnock was great to work for and if you showed him respect you got it back.
A funny story that I have happened during the 1991 FA Cup run. It was January 1991 and we had a training session on Wollaton Park in the snow. This then turned into sledging and a big snowball fight. I got the boss in the side of the neck with a large snowball live on TV!
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