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Stanley Victor Collymore (born 22 January 1971) is a English retired footballer who was active at senior level from 1990 until 2001. He was at one time the British transfer record holder when he moved to Liverpool.

Collymore was born in Stone, Staffordshire. As a young boy he supported Aston Villa. A talented centre forward, Collymore started his career as an apprentice footballer with Walsall, and also Wolverhampton Wanderers, before being released and signing for then Conference team, Stafford Rangers, where again he caught the eye of several football league clubs by demonstrating the ability for spectacular goals before being given his chance as a full-time professional with Crystal Palace at the age of 19, when he signed for them in December 1990.

[edit] Crystal Palace and Southend United

After learning his trade as understudy to the prolific Crystal Palace partnership of Mark Bright and Ian Wright, Collymore dropped down a division to Southend United and there scored 18 goals in 31 games to help keep the club in the new Division One (which had been the Football League Second Division before the creation of the Premier League for the 1992-93 season) when the odds of relegation seemed certain.

Collymore enjoyed his time at Southend saying, "I count helping to keep Southend in the first division in my season there as one of my finest achievements."

Nottingham Forest

In June 1993, Collymore signed for Nottingham Forest in a £2million deal. He was signed by newly-appointed Frank Clark, who had just taken over as manager at the end of Brian Clough`s 18-year reign as manager. Forest had just been relegated from the Premier League, but Collymore`s blistering form in the 1993–94 campaign took them back to the top flight as Division One runners-up. He scored 22 Premier League goals in 1994–95 as Forest finished third in the league and achieved UEFA Cup qualification to secure their first European campaign of the post-Heysel era.

Collymore left under a cloud and insisted that Forest had wanted to transfer him, even though the rest of the squad of players had ostracised him by then due to him causing unrest at the club, and his agent`s knocking on the door of bigger clubs. He finally left for Liverpool and then started court proceedings to claim a `loyalty bonus` which he insisted he was owed as he never wanted to leave Forest. The subsequent court case found favour for Nottingham Forest.

Liverpool

Collymore signed for Liverpool in June 1995 for a British record fee of £8.5million. He scored a spectacular goal on his Liverpool debut against Sheffield Wednesday and began a fruitful, enigmatic, and controversial two-year spell at Anfield. He scored at a ratio of a goal every other game and created many goals in a partnership with Robbie Fowler, ousting the veteran Ian Rush who was transferred to Leeds United after the 1995-96 season. He also scored two goals, including the winner against Newcastle United at Anfield in a game that was regarded as one of the most exciting in the history of the English Premiership. Indeed, it was voted by viewers of Sky Sports as the greatest sporting moment in the channel`s first ten years.[2]

Collymore also helped Liverpool to third place in the Premiership, the club`s highest position since the club finished runners-up in the old First Division in 1991. Undoubtedly a great footballer on his day, after two seasons at Anfield the striker was sol