 The arrival of left-back Tommy McQueen in March 1987 saw Parris move briefly to midfield but he returned to the left-back position for much of the 1987–88 season until the arrival of Julian Dicks in March 1988, whose form led to Parris playing at right-back or midfield for most of the rest of his career at West Ham.He made 32 league and cup appearance in the 1988–89 season as West Ham reached the semi-finals of the League Cup but were relegated to Division Two, and 49 league and cup appearances in the 1989–90 season as West Ham again reached the semi-finals of the League Cup.He made 55 league and cup appearances in the 1990–91 season, returning to left-back when Julian Dicks suffered a severe knee injury in October 1990, scoring in four successive games in January 1991 and helping West Ham to promotion back to the First Division and to the semi-finals of the FA Cup.