English footballer (1951–2021)
Raymond Kennedy (28 July 1951 – 30 November 2021) was an English footballer who won every domestic honour in the game with Arsenal and Liverpool in the 1970s and early 1980s. Kennedy played as a forward for Arsenal and then played as a left-sided midfielder for Liverpool. He scored 148 goals in 581 league and cup appearances in a 15-year career in the English Football League. Also, he won 17 caps for England between 1976 and 1980, scoring three international goals.
Kennedy turned professional for Arsenal in November 1968. He made his first-team debut 10 months later and went on to win the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1970, the First Division and FA Cup Double in 1970–71, and then play on the losing side in the 1972 FA Cup final. His form then declined, and he was sold to Liverpool for a club record £200,000 fee in July 1974, at the same time that Bill Shankly resigned as manager. He initially struggled at the club, but after manager Bob Paisley converted him to a left-sided midfielder, he went on to help Liverpool become the dominant club in English football from 1975 to 1982. During his time at the club Liverpool won the First Division five times (1975–76, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1979–80, and 1981–82), the FA Charity Shield four times (1976, 1977, 1979 and 1980), the European Cup three times, (1977, 1978, and 1981), and the UEFA Cup (1976), UEFA Super Cup (1977), and League Cup (1981). He also picked up runners-up medals in the FA Cup (1977), UEFA Super Cup (1978), League Cup (1978), and World Club Championship (1981) and won the "Match of the Day"'s Goal of the Season award in 1978–79.
He was a strong player with an excellent first touch, intelligence, and all-round ability. This allowed him to transition from a forward to a midfielder at Liverpool. Despite his trophy successes with Arsenal and Liverpool, after winning six caps for the England under-23 side, he could not translate his club form into a good international career. He was used as a stand-in for Trevor Brooking before he retired from international football in frustration in March 1981. His only international tournament appearance was at Euro 1980. Bob Paisley described him as "one of Liverpool's greatest players and probably the most underrated".
Kennedy joined Swansea City for a £160,000 fee in January 1982 and added a Welsh Cup winners medal to his collection four months later. However, the effects of Parkinson's disease began to reduce his effectiveness on the pitch, and he dropped into the Fourth Division with Hartlepool United in November 1983. During the 1984–85 season, he spent a brief time as player-manager of Cyprus club Pezoporikos and later played for Northern League club Ashington. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in November 1984. His life after football was difficult, as he had to deal with the effects of Parkinson's, the loss of his business, and the breakdown of his 15-year marriage. He remained reliant on charity to fund his medical expenses and was forced to sell his medal collection and caps in 1993.
Club career.
Ray Kennedy was born on 28 July 1951 in Seaton Delaval, a former pit village in Northumberland, to Martin and Veronica Kennedy, a coal miner and housewife, respectively. He was the eldest of four children: Trevor, Michael, and Janet. He was spotted playing schoolboy football by a scout at Port Vale and began training at Vale Park after manager Stanley Matthews came to the Kennedy home to persuade him to sign schoolboy forms at the club. However, at the age of sixteen Matthews felt Kennedy was "too slow to be a footballer". Kennedy was considered to be too big and clumsy to be a professional, and groundskeeper Dennis Dawson said he was the only man at the club to see any potential in the youngster. The club released him after being told that he would never make it as a professional.
Kennedy returned to his native north-east in March 1967 and started working in a sweet factory whilst playing as an amateur for New Hartley Juniors, where he built a successful attacking partnership with former England schoolboy international Ian Watts. The pair scored 142 goals between them and helped the club to win the East Northumberland Junior League, the Northumberland FA Junior Cup, the East Northumberland Junior League Cup, the North East Youth Challenge Cup, the East Northumberland Junior League Charlton Trophy, the Tynemouth Junior League Challenge Cup and the Magpie Trophy.
Arsenal.
Kennedy was spotted by Arsenal playing for New Hartley Juniors. Though the scouts had initially gone to the game to watch his striker partner, Watts, Kennedy had impressed enough to win an apprentice contract with Arsenal in May 1968. He then signed professional forms with the club in November 1968. He had a difficult task though to win a first-team place, as manager Bertie Mee used only 15 players throughout the entire 1968–69 season, during which time Kennedy made 20 appearances for the Reserve team as they claimed the Football Combination Division One title.
He made his first-team debut on 29 September 1969, against Glentoran in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and his First Division debut as a substitute on 18 October, a 1–1 draw with Sunderland at Roker Park. He scored his first goal for the Gunners in the reverse fixture against Sunderland at Highbury, which ended in a 3–1 win. He went on to appear as a 77th-minute substitute in the first leg of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final against Belgian club Anderlecht at Constant Vanden Stock Stadium, and scored a late goal in a 3–1 defeat. Though he did not appear in the second leg, his goal proved to be decisive as Arsenal claimed a 4–3 aggregate victory to win the first European trophy in the club's history.
Charlie George broke his ankle on the opening game of the 1970–71 season, and Kennedy replaced him as John Radford's strike partner for the following game and went on to feature in the remaining league fixtures of the campaign as Arsenal went on to be crowned champions. They exited the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup with a defeat to the German side 1. FC Köln at the quarter-final stage, though after their draw with Lazio in the First Round Kennedy was attacked by some of the Lazio players in an Italian restaurant, and in the ensuing brawl, police pulled a gun on teammate Eddie Kelly; Kennedy later said the Lazio players targeted him due to his "cheeky face". Back in the league, he scored his first hat-trick in victory over Nottingham Forest. However, he admitted after the match that he was "still expecting to be dropped any minute". Arsenal overtook Leeds United to win the league title on the final day of the season, Kennedy scoring the only goal of the game with a late header in a 1–0 victory over North London derby rivals Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. In the FA Cup, Arsenal progressed past Yeovil Town, Portsmouth (following a replay), Manchester City, Leicester City (following a replay), and Stoke City (following a replay), before meeting Liverpool in the final at Wembley Stadium. Liverpool led early in extra time, but goals from George Graham and Charlie George won the game for Arsenal. They secured only the fourth Double in English football. Kennedy had missed some good chances throughout the match, though he later pointed out that "nobody really remembers anything bad if you win".
Arsenal endured a poor start to the 1971–72 season, and as a result, Mee purchased Alan Ball from Everton for £220,000. They went on to go 14 games unbeaten over the winter, closing the gap on leaders Manchester City to four points. They were knocked out of the European Cup at the quarter-final stage by eventual winners Ajax. They ended the season in fifth place, and gifted Derby County the league title by denying Liverpool what would have proved to be a decisive victory on the penultimate day of the season. Arsenal returned to Wembley to defend the FA Cup, but lost 1–0 to Leeds United; Kennedy had lost his first-team place late in the season after fatigue began to affect his form, and was only named as a substitute for the final before he came on for Radford after 73 minutes. He scored 19 goals in 55 appearances to finish as the club's top goalscorer for the second successive season.
He struggled at the start of the 1972–73 season, his confidence and form suffered as defenders marked him more closely and poor diet saw his weight rise to over . Captain Frank McLintock remarked to the management that Kennedy was only operating at 60% capacity. Kennedy was fined £200 before he began to shed weight and rediscover his form. Arsenal finished the season in second place, and he scored just nine league goals throughout the campaign. Arsenal reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, where Sunderland beat them.
Arsenal dropped into mid-table throughout the 1973–74 season, with McLintock's departure signalling the demise of the Double-winning team. Kennedy failed to score from 6 October to mid-January, and speculation rose of possible moves to Sunderland, Newcastle United, or Aston Villa. In February, he released a statement saying that "my game has gone downhill since I got married but has started to pick up again now I am in bachelordom... I feel that I am better off without her". He ended the season in good form, though Mee had already decided to move him on and replace him with Brian Kidd.
 ;templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" / ;I couldn't believe it when he left and felt it was a great shame to have broken up our partnership which had wobbled slightly but which I was sure would come together again with a little time.
Liverpool.
In July 1974, Kennedy was sold to Liverpool for a club record £200,000. Manager Bill Shankly resigned on the same day as the transfer was made, though had admired Kennedy for years and stated that "maybe it will be said that one of the last things I did at this club was to sign a great new player". Shortly after the move Kennedy got back in touch with his estranged wife. The pair began living together in Ainsdale. New manager Bob Paisley handed Kennedy his debut in place of John Toshack against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 31 August 1974. It took Kennedy 22 minutes to open his goalscoring account as the Reds recorded a comfortable 3–0 win. Liverpool ended the 1974–75 season as runners-up to Derby County in the league. Kennedy featured just 25 times in the league as Toshack formed an effective combination with Kevin Keegan up front and started to become frustrated and disillusioned in the club.
Bob Paisley felt Kennedy could perform as a midfielder. After Kennedy replaced an injured Peter Cormack against Middlesbrough on 1 November, he went on to make the number five shirt his own for the rest of the decade. His new position allowed him to use his vision and distribution to create chances for his teammates whilst still allowing him to make runs into scoring positions to add goals himself. Liverpool won the league title in 1975–76 with a final day victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers to beat Queens Park Rangers into second place. They also secured the UEFA Cup, knocking out Hibernian (Scotland), Real Sociedad (Spain), Śląsk Wrocław (Poland), Dynamo Dresden (Germany), and Barcelona (Spain), before facing Belgian side Club Brugge in the final. Liverpool were losing 2–0 in the first leg of the final at Anfield before Kennedy scored the first of Liverpool's three goals to overturn the deficit; in the return leg at the Olympiastadion, Liverpool drew 1–1 to win the tie 4–3 on aggregate.
Liverpool opened the new season by claiming the 1976 FA Charity Shield with a 1–0 win over Southampton and went on to win the league largely on their home form, Kennedy's goal in a 2–1 win over title contenders Ipswich Town on 30 April proving to be decisive. Though Liverpool failed to win any of their last four league matches, they finished one point clear of Manchester City in second. Liverpool won the European Super Cup with a comprehensive 7–1 victory over German club Hamburg. Liverpool also reached the 1977 FA Cup final but lost the chance to follow Arsenal's feat at