Date / Year of birth: 18th March 1971

Position: Striker

Season of first appearance: 1993/94

Season of last appearance: 1994/95

Also played for: Sunderland (0), Blyth Spartans, Maidstone United (3+13,1), Dover Athletic, Hastings Town, Gateshead, Folkestone Invicta, Tonbridge Angels, Bedlington Terriers, Whitley Bay and Chester-le-Street

Prolific goalscorer born in Wallsend on Tyneside who played for New Hartley Juniors as a schoolboy before joining Sunderland. Steve featured in the Black Cats' youth team during 1989/90 as well as playing for Blyth Spartans during the season. He scored three Northern League goals for Spartans during the campaign, the first of them on his debut in a 2-1 defeat at Billingham Synthonia on 7.10.89.

Having been released by Sunderland in the summer of 1990 Steve joined Blyth on a permanent basis and scored an impressive 45 goals during 1990/91. His tally included three hat-tricks as well as four goals in a 7-0 home win over South Bank on 13.10.90.

In May 1991 4th Division Maidstone signed Steve for a fee of £2,000 and he made his first team debut for the Stones as a substitute in a League Cup tie Leicester on 21.8.91. On 7.9.91 Steve scored after coming on as a sub in a 2-0 win at Scunthorpe and he went on to make a total of 16 appearances (13 as sub) for Maidstone without scoring again before the end of the 1991/92 campaign, the Stones' last before folding.

In August 1992 Steve joined Dover and scored on his debut after coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 win at Cambridge City on 26.8.92. He also scored as a sub in a 3-1 home win over Margate on 20.10.92. On 1.12.92 Steve got five goals in a 7-1 win over Folkestone in an Eastern Floodlight Cup tie at Crabble and on 20.4.93 he came off the bench to score both Dover's goals as they beat Stourbridge 2-1 at home in the 2nd Leg of the Southern League Cup Final which the Midlands club won 3-2 on aggregate. Steve finished 1992/93 as Dover's leading scorer with 25 goals from 49 appearances (31 as sub). A remarkable 12 of his goals were scored as a substitute.

In the summer of 1993 Steve was transfer-listed by Dover manager Chris Kinnear and at the start of September Margate signed him for an undisclosed club record fee believed to be in the region of £5,000. Steve played his first game for Margate in a 1-0 win over Havant at Hartsdown Park on 4.9.93 and the Thanet Times said it was an "encouraging debut". He quickly struck up an understanding with fellow striker Joe Brayne and on 11.9.93 both he and Steve scored hat-tricks in a 6-0 home win over Pagham in an FA Cup tie. They were Steve's first goals for Margate and it was the first time that two Margate players had scored hat-tricks in the same match since January 1974. The Thanet Times said that Steve's "cultured and incisive play...showed what led the management to pay so much for his services" and his second goal was a tremendous rising drive that crashed into the top corner of the net. From then on he scored consistently and the Isle of Thanet Gazette said Steve had "made a big difference to Margate's attacking options" the day before he got two goals in a 3-1 win at Bromley in the FA Cup on 25.9.93. On 26.10.93 Steve scored what the Gazette called an "absolute gem of a goal" after five minutes of a home game with Sudbury, firing home a lofted drive from fully 25 yards out that helped Margate to a 2-1 win. The paper said "his neat touches stamp him as a quality striker at this level" and called Steve "the master of the first touch". On 15.12.93 he had a weak penalty saved in a 4-1 defeat at Tonbridge but by the end of 1993 Steve had scored 11 goals.

He enjoyed an excellent run of form during January and February 1994 and when Steve scored in a 4-2 win at Tonbridge on 19.1.94 it was the first of five consecutive games in which he found the net. A full-length diving header in a 1-1 draw at Dunstable on 5.2.94 was the best of Steve's efforts during his purple patch and then on 1.3.94 he scored five for the reserves in a 7-1 win at Thamesmead in the Kent Midweek League. On 24.4.94 Steve scored twice in a 6-0 win over Braintree at Hartsdown and on 28.4.94 he bagged a hat-trick for the reserves in a 5-3 win at Faversham. On 2.5.94 he was part of the side that beat his old club Dover 2-1 at Gillingham's Priestfield Stadium to win the Kent Senior Cup for Margate and Steve finished the season having scored 24 times in 49 first team appearances (one as sub). His goal tally was one less than Brayne's and Steve also scored 15 times for the reserves.

Steve signalled his intentions for 1994/95 by scoring six times in Margate's pre-season friendlies and despite Brayne's departure he went on to enjoy an excellent campaign. On 20.8.94, the opening day of the season, Steve scored twice in a 3-1 win over Bashley at Hartsdown and he bagged another brace in a 3-1 home win over Tonbridge on 20.9.94. He then scored in Margate's next four matches and Steve's run included a hat-trick in 5-3 win at Peacehaven & Telscombe in an FA Cup replay on 27.9.94 and another treble in a 5-1 win at Fisher on 4.10.94 which took his tally to ten goals in five games. Steve then endured a barren run of seven matches without scoring despite playing well and the Thanet Times said he "had an outstanding game" as Margate lost 1-0 at home to Kingstonian in the FA Cup on 8.10.94. The paper wrote "he was full of running and his sharp close control (was) a revelation". Between 8.11.94 and 26.11.94 inclusive Steve was on target in four consecutive matches and was Margate's only scorer during those games. The Isle of Thanet Gazette said his rising drive in a 1-1 draw with Braintree at Hartsdown on 15.11.94 was a "stunning goal" whilst the Times described Steve's close range finish in a 1-0 home win over Yate on 19.11.94 as "a magic moment of opportunism". He also found the net in a 5-2 defeat at Salisbury on 3.12.94 to take his scoring run to five matches.

Steve enjoyed another five game scoring spell during December 1994 and January 1995, starting with a 2-0 win over Poole at Hartsdown on 17.12.94. On 2.1.95 he scored a hat-trick in a 7-3 win over visitors Tonbridge and also had a penalty saved. The Gazette said "he has the knack of being able to sense when a possible opportunity is about to come his way" and added "although slight of stature he is a terrier in the penalty area". Steve rounded off his spree with another hat-trick in Margate's next match - a 3-1 win over Clevedon at Hartsdown. He continued to score regularly after that but on 22.3.95 Steve was sent off for retaliating to a bad challenge after just 17 minutes of a 2-0 defeat at Havant. On 25.3.95 he scored both goals in a 2-0 win at Burnham and after serving a three match ban in April Steve returned to score twice in a 3-0 home win over Fisher on 17.4.95. He got two more goals in a 3-2 defeat against Weymouth at Hartsdown on 25.4.95 and on 2.5.95 Steve notched up his 40th goal of the season in a 2-0 win at Weston-Super-Mare. On 6.5.95 he played in a 4-0 home defeat against Baldock to finish the season with a record of 40 goals from 52 appearances.

Towards the end of May 1995 Margate turned down Gravesend & Northfleet's £7,000 offer for Steve and General Manager Cliff Egan told the Gazette "we don't want to lose him and anyway the offer was not a realistic one". However in August 1995 a bid from Southern League Premier Division Hastings was accepted and Steve left Margate before the start of the 1995/96 season having scored 64 goals in exactly 100 starts for the club. The transfer fee wasn't disclosed by Margate but was quickly revealed to be £13,000 by The Sun newspaper in an article that explained how Sussex-based lottery winner Mark Gardiner had paid the fee out of his own pocket. The report was headlined "£22m Mark Buys Local Side A Star" and Steve told the paper "It's flattering - £13,000 is a lot. A non-league transfer is usually about £500 or a set of new shirts." In an interview for the Thanet Times he said "I've really enjoyed my two seasons at Margate and I've many happy memories including winning the Kent Senior Cup last year. But it's a step up for me and although my chances of returning to the professional game are fading I want to play at the highest level possible." As various Margate fans voiced their dismay over Steve's sale in letters to the local papers chairman Gordon Wallis told the Thanet Times "If a club comes forward with an offer that would be financially the right option, you've got to bite the bullet" and in August 1995 Margate issued a press release saying that the £13,000 quoted was inaccurate.

He was Hastings' leading scorer with 24 goals during the 1995/96 season and Steve's tally included four in a 6-2 home win over Salisbury on 11.11.95. He top scored again during 1996/97 with 16 goals including a hat-trick in a 4-3 win over Sudbury on 25.3.97. During that season Steve had a spell on loan at Conference side Gateshead where he only started twice during February and March 1997 but scored a goal as a substitute in a 3-2 home win over Woking on 8.3.97.

In September 1997 Steve left Hastings to join Kent League club Folkestone and he scored over 30 goals during 1997/98 including two hat-tricks. Towards the end of 1998 Steve was loaned to Tonbridge where he scored twice in five appearances (one as sub) and he left Folkestone permanently to return to his native North East early in the 1999/00 season.

Steve initially joined Bedlington before moving on to Whitley Bay during the 1999/00 campaign.

He top scored for Whitley Bay with 25 goals during 2000/01 and in January 2001 Steve turned down the chance of rejoining Gateshead. On 11.5.02 he was part of the Whitley Bay side that won the FA Vase by beating Tiptree United 1-0 at Villa Park, coming on as a substitute to provide the cross that resulted in the winning goal.

In the summer of 2002 Steve joined Chester-le-Street before retiring at the end of 2003.

He rejoined Whitley Bay as a coach at the start of 2004 and during the 2004/05 season Steve made a comeback as a player for the club. In the summer of 2005 he retired again aged 34 and Steve said he'd given up "due to minor niggly injuries I keep picking up when I play. My body telling me something and I know my best years behind me." At that time he was a fireman living close to Whitley Bay's ground and Steve said that he still kept a look out for Margate's results.

He became Whitley Bay's assistant manager for the 2005/06 season and on 1.10.05 Steve was sent from the bench during a 4-2 defeat at Sunderland Nissan in an FA Vase 2nd Qualifying Round tie. During the summer of 2007 he briefly came out of retirement to play in some of the club's pre-season games and on 14.7.07 Steve scored the winner in a 3-2 home win over Thackley. In May 2009 Whitley Bay won the FA Vase with a 2-0 win over Glossop North End at Wembley and Steve was still the club's assistant manager / coach at the time.

During the 2009/10 season he made the long trip south to turn out for Dover's veterans team and scored twice in a 4-1 win over Bromley's veterans in February 2010.

In May 2010 Steve was back at Wembley as assistant manager of Whitley Bay. They hammered Wroxham 6-1 to retain the FA Vase.

Later in 2010 Steve featured in a television advert for sports channel ESPN that promoted their coverage of the FA Cup. The advertising campaign focused on "everyman" players who had scored goals in the FA Cup in the past and were now pursuing alternative careers - a fireman in Steve's case.

On 8.5.11 Steve had yet another day out at Wembley as Whitley Bay won the FA Vase for a third consecutive season but a couple of weeks later he left the club.

On 24.5.11 he was appointed as manager of Conference North outfit Blyth Spartans, returning to the club almost exactly 20 years after leaving. Steve told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle "I'm delighted, I've followed Blyth since I was a kid, played for the club and have a massive soft spot for it."

Unfortunately things didn't work out for Steve at Blyth and he left the club by mutual consent in December 2011 after a run of two wins in 20 matches had left the club bottom of the Conference North. He told local paper The Journal "I am very disappointed to be leaving Blyth. I had high hopes but things transpired against us. I know every club has injury problems but I don't feel like I had a break from the footballing gods. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. You could not make up what has gone against us in the last six months."

In May 2012 Steve returned to football when he was appointed as assistant manager of Northern League Division 1 side Newcastle Benfield.

Steve's first name was actually Michael and before becoming a professional at Maidstone he worked as a croupier in a casino.

A relative of Steve's called Francis Cuggy made over 150 appearances for Sunderland between 1909 and 1921 and also won two caps for England.