During the English summer break in 1975, he joined Portland Timbers in the North American Soccer League on loan and enjoyed the experience enough to return to the club on a permanent basis in 1977.
[4] He had regularly trained under Alan A'Court for his school side and had been set to join the club before impressing scouts from Manchester United while representing Lancashire schoolboys.
"[4] Although manager Matt Busby offered Anderson the chance to remain with the club, he decided to leave in order to find first team football and was allowed to join Aston Villa for a fee of £20,000 in January 1967 at the age of nineteen.
He made his debut on 27 February 1973 in a 3–0 defeat to Swindon Town and played in all fourteen of the club's remaining league fixtures in the 1972–73 season as they narrowly avoided relegation to the Third Division.
[11][12] In his third season, Anderson played a prominent role in a struggling side, appearing in 37 league matches as the club suffered relegation to the Third Division after finishing in 21st place.
[11] Anderson regained top form for the Bluebirds in the Third Division promotion season of 1975–76, for which he retains legendary status amongst a new generation of Cardiff City fans.
Playing on the left wing and with a remarkably deep, left-footed cross, he fed a dynamic partnership of Adrian Alston and Tony Evans, that fired Cardiff to second place and promotion to the Second Division at the first attempt.
The Bluebirds attracted large attendances in this campaign, including a crowd of over 35,000 against Hereford United in a 2–0 win in the penultimate game of the season, in which Anderson played a key part.
Anderson saw out the following campaign back in Division 2, the highlight was a remarkable left foot strike at home in an early 3–2 win against Bolton Wanderes on 9 October 1976, coming from 2-0 down.
[14][15] He arrived after the start of the season after Cardiff reached the final of the Welsh Cup and, despite suffering jetlag after travelling to America two days earlier, he made his debut in a 2–0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps.
[15] Forming an effective wing partnership with Jimmy Kelly, he helped the team achieve a 16–6 record, winning the Western Conference before suffering defeat to Tampa Bay Rowdies in the pre-season final.