History-making striker Johnson dies aged 71
FORMER England striker David Johnson, the first player to score for both Everton and Liverpool in Merseyside derbies, has died at the age of 71. Affectionately known as ‘the Doc’, Johnson played eight times for England and scored six goals, including two in a 3-1 win against world champions Argentina, Diego Maradona et al, in 1980. Phil Thompson, Johnson’s former Liverpool and England team-mate, led the tributes.
‘It’s a very sad day,’ he said. ‘The Doc was so popular among the lads and he was hugely influential in keeping us all together after we finished playing.
‘That performance against Argentina, the great thing was he got a standing ovation that night at Wembley. He wasn’t too happy being taken off by Ron Greenwood mind, as not many England strikers would be if you were on a hat-trick against Argentina. You don’t get that chance too often but it spoke volumes for how good he was.’ Despite growing up as a Liverpool supporter, Johnson joined Everton as a youngster and scored on his debut against Burnley in January 1971. He went on to score on his FA Cup debut against Derby County and his European bow against Panathinaikos. He scored the winner on his derby debut in November 1971. Johnson’s talent was noted by Bill Shankly, who wanted to sign him for Liverpool, but Everton sold him to Bobby Robson’s Ipswich instead in a swap deal for Rod Belfitt. He earned his first England cap while at Ipswich and scored twice on his debut against Wales in a 2-2 draw. Liverpool eventually beat Tottenham to sign him in 1976 for £200,000 and he quickly earned his ‘Doc’ nickname.
‘Johnno used to bring a bag in every day full of everything, a right box of tricks, including headache tablets and anti-inflammatories,’ said Thompson. ‘Terry McDermott was rifling through it one day and said, “It’s like a doctor’s bag, this”, and it stuck. It didn’t take long before someone put a red cross on it. We’d ask Doc first rather than bother with the physio.
‘He was a terrific player. He was an absolute nuisance to play against when he was at Ipswich, so strong and great in the air, so I was made up when we signed him. He struck up a great rapport with Kevin Keegan and Kenny Dalglish. ‘You look at that team around 1978 to 1980 and we smashed everyone, scoring lots of goals, and the Doc was a huge part of that.’ Johnson made history in 1978 when his goal against Everton made him the first player to score for both clubs in a Merseyside derby — a feat only Peter Beardsley has replicated. He went on to win four league titles, two League Cups and three European Cups with Liverpool before Howard Kendall re-signed him for Everton for £100,000 in 1982.
Johnson played for Barnsley, Manchester City, American side Tulsa Roughnecks and Preston, as well as having a spell as player-manager at Barrow, before retiring in 1986 and taking up commentary roles on local radio.
Amid further tributes from Dalglish, John Aldridge and David Fairclough, another close friend Terry McDermott said: ‘Heartbroken to hear of the passing of my great mate and Liverpool legend David ‘the Doc’ Johnson. A diamond of a man, one in a million.’