 This honour was the peak of his career, and after the first few games of the 1976-77 season he was replaced by Malcolm Waldron.He was briefly loaned out to Rangers in November 1976, playing 5 games, including the Old Firm derby against Celtic but did not fit into Jock Wallace's plans and returned to The Dell.After his return to Southampton, he seemed to have re-established himself in the team being virtually ever-present from mid-December onwards, including appearing in 5 FA cup matches before Saints were eliminated by the team they had beaten in the previous season's final, Manchester United, who went on to win the 1977 FA Cup.