Following retirement, he became a television pundit and most notably worked on ITV Sport's The Premiership between 2001 and 2004 whilst the network held the rights to show Premier League highlights.

[4] Venison had originally made his debut for the Black Cats, aged just 17, on 10 October 1981 in the 2–0 league defeat to Notts County at Meadow Lane.

The steady and reliable right full-back settled into first team football well at Roker Park and became a firm favourite in 1983–84, when he missed just one league game.

The recent Double winners paid Sunderland £200,000 for Venison's services on 31 July 1986, with a view to him becoming a long term successor to the ageing right-back Mark Lawrenson.

[4] Venison, along with his teammates, supported the bereaved families of the Hillsborough disaster in April 1989, attending a number of the funerals,[4] he then played his role as Liverpool reached the final of the FA Cup again.

[4] Liverpool later lost the League title in a decider against Arsenal at Anfield after Michael Thomas scored the winner with virtually the last kick of the whole season.

However, he was not included in the squad, and with Liverpool now managed by Graeme Souness, who had succeeded Dalglish a year earlier, it appeared that Venison's future now lay away from Anfield, particularly after the form of new signing Rob Jones at right-back.

On 31 July 1992, exactly six years after joining Liverpool, he departed from Merseyside and returned to the North East to play for Sunderland's rivals Newcastle United, who were preparing for a promotion push in the new Division One (as the old Second Division was now named following the creation of the FA Premier League) under the management of former Liverpool, Newcastle United and England striker Kevin Keegan.

[4] Venison made his debut of the Magpies on 15 August 1992 in the 3–2 league win over Southend United at St James' Park, Venison enjoyed a tremendous beginning to his Newcastle career as they won their first eleven league games in a row, leaving them runaway leaders of Division One and looking uncatchable in the promotion race by October.

The run came to an end when they lost to a last minute goal at home against Grimsby Town; they fell just 2 games short of the record 13 straight victories that had been set seven years earlier by Reading in the old Third Division.

Keegan's team played in an exuberant, attacking style and their defence included a revitalised Venison as well as the likes of John Beresford and Steve Howey.

[citation needed] Venison remained a crucial part of the Newcastle defence as they returned to the top flight in 1993–94, and helped them hit the ground running as they secured a third-place finish (though they never really looked like catching up with the leading pair that consisted of champions Manchester United and runners-up Blackburn Rovers).

[citation needed] He played 28 times for the Magpies in the 1994–95 season, scoring his only league goal for them, and for a while it looked as though he might be gaining another championship medal to add to the two he earned at Liverpool.

[4] He played 22 Premier League games that season as Southampton avoided relegation on goal difference and reached the FA Cup quarter finals.

[9] Venison became Technical Director of Orange County Blues, before succeeding Wyss as head coach to see out the 2016 USL Pro season.