‘Psycho’ Stuart Pearce’s ‘toughest opponent’ was 5’6 winger who did time in jail

For both club and country, Stuart 'Psycho' Pearce faced some of the finest footballing talents of his generation.

But none were tougher than a 5ft 6ins winger who ended up doing hard time in a "brutal" prison.

Pearce, who got his nickname on account of his aggressive, tough tackling and uncompromising playing style, said former West Ham hero Mark Ward was the man he dreaded lining up against the most.

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Ward, a Scouser who also played for clubs including Manchester City, Everton, never managed an international appearance, but turned out 165 times for the Hammers between 1985 and 1990.

And he gave Pearce, who would later play for West Ham himself, nightmares.

The former England left-back came up against Ward while playing for Nottingham Forest.

Speaking to Chris Kamara and Ben Shephard on their Proper Football podcast, he said the ground he hated playing at the most was West Ham's Upton Park, thanks largely to one man.

He said: "As a West Ham player I loved it. When I put a West Ham shirt on the ferocity of Upton Park was brilliant.

"Before that, when I used to go there, I had some of the worst games I ever had at Upton Park, and playing against Mark Ward who I put down as my toughest opponent.

"Not the best of players – tough, you couldn’t rough him up a little bit, low centre of gravity, could move the ball inside and out, and caused me as many problems.

"So I always felt, when I had the opportunity to join West Ham, I had this little nagging thing in my mind – it’s Upton Park, my goodness me, half the games are home, oh no, no.

"When you go there and you’ve got the chicken run on your side, it’s a different game altogether."

Ward, 59, joined West Ham from Oldham and went on to play for West Ham, Manchester City, Everton and Birmingham before dropping down the leagues. He retired in the late 1990s.

In 2005, he was jailed for eight years for drug trafficking after 8.8lbs of cocaine worth up to £650,000, was found at his rented house in Prescot, Merseyside.

He later told how he had agreed rent the house and "stash" the drugs for a gang of dealers after falling on hard times following the end of his career.

Earlier this year, he appeared on GB News and told how he served four years behind bars, including a stint in HMP Liverpool, which he described as "brutal" and "violent".

Pearce, 60, started his career at non-league Wealdstone, going on to play for Coventry, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle, West Ham and Manchester City. He also played 78 times for England.

Since hanging up his boots, he's held several coaching roles and has managed Forest, Manchester City, the England under-21 team and Great Britain at the 2012 Olympics.

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