Everton

Son of My Father – The Tale of Two Joes
08
Jan
By Steve Zocek
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1970-1979, Articles, History, Interview, Members Work, Players, Steve Zocek, ,

Son of My Father – The Tale of Two Joes

Welcome to Part Five of Son of my Father. This time, I feature a football family from Glasgow: Joe McBride (Jnr) who played for Everton, and his father Joe McBride (Snr) who will be most remembered for his playing days at Celtic Park in the 1960’s. Joe senior actually had a great personal statistic by being top scorer at every club he played for. We start with Joe (Snr) who was born in 1938, a stone throws away from Rangers’ Ibrox Park. His football career began as a very young 15-year-old at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock. After 57 games and 24…
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Gerry Mullan – When Irish Eyes are Smiling
21
Nov
By Steve Zocek
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1980-1989, Articles, History, Interview, Steve Zocek, , , ,

Gerry Mullan – When Irish Eyes are Smiling

Gerry Mullan signed for Everton from Ballymena United in October 1980. To date he was the most expensive Irish league player at £30,000. Gerry failed to make a first team appearance for the Toffees but gained 4 caps for his country-Norther Ireland. Gerry is quite a private man, but was very helpful in assisting me with an insight to his time at Everton.  Gerry Middle row 2nd from the left SIGNING FOR EVERTON "After 4 reasonably good seasons at Ballymena, I trained really hard in my fifth season, trying to push myself to the limit. As well as Everton, a…
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Terry Cochrane – an interview with Steve Zocek
04
Aug
By Steve Zocek
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1970-1979, Articles, Interview, , , ,

Terry Cochrane – an interview with Steve Zocek

Terry in his Gillingham days Terry Cochrane started his football career in Northern Ireland with Derry City then Linfield. His displays for The Blues started to attract attention from football clubs in England, one in particular Everton catching the eye of fellow Billy Bingham.  He was invited over to Everton for a week’s trial. Terry kindly told me of his experience at Everton. When I was at Linfield, I was asked to go to Merseyside to have a trial with Everton under Billy Bingham. I was put up in digs near Bellefield where I would walk into training every morning. I…
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Son of My father (Part Three) -Jeremy Charles
13
Jun
By Steve Zocek
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1970-1979, Articles, History, Interview, Members Work, Steve Zocek, , , ,

Son of My father (Part Three) -Jeremy Charles

This is part three of Son of my Father. John Charles and brother Mel in 1955 - the men who founded a football dynastyCopyright REX FEATURES  Mel Charles was a famous Welsh international who played his club football mostly at Swansea Town, as the club was then called. Mel had a son called Jeremy, who, like his father, went on to play for the same club and country. As a youngster, Jeremy was invited to Bellefield where he spent a week on trial. This Is Jeremy’s version of events. I was playing for the local schoolboys in Swansea, and in…
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Tommy Wheeldon: the Third New Boy
09
May
By Steve Zocek
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1970-1979, Articles, History, Interview, Members Work, Steve Zocek, ,

Tommy Wheeldon: the Third New Boy

On Tuesday 7th December 1976,Everton manager Billy Bingham made a triple swoop by signing Duncan McKenzie from Anderlecht, Bruce Rioch from Derby County and Tommy Wheeldon.  Tommy who? You know, Tommy Wheeldon from St Helens Town?  Never heard of him? You have now. Liverpool schoolboys in cologne I was intrigued to find the truth about Tommy, an Evertonian from birth, who was expected to reach better things in football. Tommy takes up this wonderful story.  I played for England Under 18’s and attracted interest from both Everton and West Ham United and a few more clubs. John Lyall the manager of West Ham made contact with me, and I also received a letter from Ron Greenwood the former…
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Harry Catterick’s Centenary
26
Nov
By Rob Sawyer
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1960-1969, Articles, Events, History, Managers, Rob Sawyer,

Harry Catterick’s Centenary

Last Friday, the Everton FC Heritage Society organised and hosted the ‘Catterick 100’ event to celebrate the life and achievements of Harry Catterick - who would have turned 100 on 26th November. He is remembered and celebrated on the Blue half of Merseyside for his stellar managerial achievements in the 1960s. His trophy haul for the Toffees has been eclipsed only by Howard Kendall. Attendees at the celebration event, held in the People’s Club Lounge at Goodison Park, included members of the Catterick family, Heritage Society members, club officials and supporters. Master of ceremonies, Ken Rogers, led the attendees through…
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Everton FC’s 1909 pre-season tour of South America, Edwardian style
21
Oct
By David Prentice
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1900-1909, Articles, David Prentice, History, Members Work, ,

Everton FC’s 1909 pre-season tour of South America, Edwardian style

The amazing story of Everton's pioneering 1909 tour of South America In the summer months of 1909 a 13-strong Everton FC playing staff led by two directors and a trainer, together with travelling companions Tottenham Hotspur, travelled 14,000 miles and spent more than six weeks at sea, visiting Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina – “to introduce and develop first class football.” Their story is a fascinating one – and thanks to the diligence of director E. Bainbridge and an exhaustive tour diary he produced for the Echo, the story of the ground-breaking tour can be retold a century later. So settle…
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When The Toffees Outshone The Blades – Anfield Under Illumination
15
Oct
By Richie Gillham
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1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Richard Gillham, ,

When The Toffees Outshone The Blades – Anfield Under Illumination

The year 1878 not only saw the foundation of the football team that would become Everton FC but, in October of that year, the first experiments in playing artificially-illuminated matches. At Sheffield United’s Bramhall Lane ground, dynamo-powered lamps were mounted on timber gantries to provide the light for a match contested by teams made up of representatives from local clubs. The ‘Blues’ ran out 2-0 winners. But it was here on Merseyside, on 8th January 1890, that one of the most significant trials of this nascent technology occurred. On this occasion Paraffin-fuelled lamps, manufactured by A. C. Wells & Co.…
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Everton – The Baseball Years
08
Oct
By Richie Gillham
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1920-1929, 1930-1939, Articles, History, Members Work, Richard Gillham, Rob Sawyer, , , ,

Everton – The Baseball Years

The BATS British American Tobacco Team with John Moores (2nd from left in hat), circa 1935 Baseball may be a minority sport in the UK but 80 years ago Merseyside was a hotbed of this popular American pastime. Had it not been for the outbreak of War in 1939 perhaps it would have gained a proper foothold in our sporting life. Folklore has it that William Ralph ‘Dixie’ Dean was once introduced to the legendary Babe Ruth (of Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees fame) at a football match. Dean recalled to journalist John Roberts his encounter with Babe.…
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Searching For The Blues Baseballers
07
Oct
By David Prentice
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1930-1939, 1940-1949, Articles, David Prentice, History, ,

Searching For The Blues Baseballers

Everton baseball team circa 1945 Featuring Gordon Watson of EFC and Theo Kelly as trainer wearing hat The Everton team you've never heard of as Blues search for sporting pioneers Everton were once a leading name in trying to establish a popular American sport on Merseyside  Because Everton have diversified into other sports in their long sporting history - and the Everton Heritage Society - the group of historians which seeks to research and chronicle all elements of the football club, is interested in discovering more about one particular diversion. Baseball. The Toffees have flirted with another sport with American…
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