Biography
Central defender Steve Deere joined the Tigers in May 1973 after carving a strong reputation at Scunthorpe – veteran Tiger Ken Houghton was a makeweight in the deal for Deere. Steve slotted straight into Terry Neill’s first team and in 1973/74 he started every game in League and Cup competitions, scoring his first City goal in a December 1973 3-0 win over Crystal Palace. Deere began the 1974/75 season in a similar vein but by November he was dropped by new manager John Kaye in favour of young defender Stuart Croft. Steve returned to the first team in January and February 1975 but by mid-March he was dropped again and never started another League game for the Tigers. In 1975/76 Deere’s appearances were limited to a handful of Cup appearances and he had loan spells at Barnsley and Stockport during the Autumn and Winter months. In March 1976 he was released by Hull City and joined Bridlington Town.
Stephen Herbert Deere was born in Burnham Market, a village on the north Norfolk coast. He was an apprentice at Norwich City in the mid-1960s where he came to the attention of manager Ron Ashman. Ashman left the Canaries in the 1966 close season but in 1967 he was appointed manager of Scunthorpe United and boosted his squad by signing the lanky 19 year old Deere. Scunthorpe dropped into the Fourth Division in 1968 but won promotion back to the third tier in 1972. Deere was a first team regular throughout these ups and downs, as well as when The Iron went on an unlikely run to the Fifth Round of the FA Cup in 1969 – Deere contributed a 30 yard piledriver as Millwall were defeated in the Third Round. When Scunthorpe were again relegated in 1973 the Tigers made their move and claimed Deere’s signature.
Folloiwng his release by Hull City in March 1976 Deere saw out the season at Bridlington Town then started the season with Scarborough, then one of the most successful non-league teams in England. He played in the 1977 FA Trophy Final at Wembley, in which Scarborough defeated Dagenham to lift the trophy. After a season and a half at Seamer Road Deere was lured back to the Football League in February 1978 when he returned to Scunthorpe United. He played two more years for The Iron before retiring in 1980 having made 378 senior appearances (to which he added 28 goals), which places Deere fifth in Scunthorpe’s all-time list of appearance makers. After retirement Deere played for the Ex-Tigers XI for many years.
Details
Nationality: England
Date/Place of Birth: 31 March 1948, Burnham Market
Hull City First Game: 11 August 1973, Mansfield Town A (Watney Cup First Round), 25 years, 133 days old
Hull City Final Game: 2 February 1976, Sunderland A (FA Cup Fourth Round), 27 years, 308 days old
Clubs
Norwich City (1964-1967), Scunthorpe United (1967-1973), Hull City (1973-1976), Barnsley (1975, loan), Stockport County (1975-1976, loan), Bridlngton Town (1976), Scarborough (1976-1978), Scunthorpe United (1978-1980)
Hull City Record
Career: 84 apps, 2 goals
Steve Deere| Season | LGE App | LGE Gls | FAC App | FAC Gls | FLC App | FLC Gls | EUR App | EUR Gls | OTH App | OTH Gls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973/74 | 42 (0) | 1 | 2 (0) | 0 | 5 (0) | 0 | - | - | 3 (0) | 0 |
| 1974/75 | 23 (1) | 1 | 1 (2) | 0 | 1 (0) | 0 | - | - | - | - |
| 1975/76 | - | - | 0 (1) | 0 | - | - | - | - | 3 (0) | 0 |