Rob Sawyer
Members of Everton FC Heritage Society were among those attending a special preview event
of an exhibition at Hill Dickinson Stadium which celebrates the first eleven Black male players to
represent Everton Football Club. Also present were a number of people from the Merseyside
BAME and sporting communities plus anti-racism activists.
The exhibition has information on the following footballers who pulled on the blue jersey for the
Toffees’ first team (debut years shown):
1966 – Mike Trebilcock
1975 – Cliff Marshall
1994 – Daniel Amokachi
1995 – Earl Barrett
1997 – Terry Phelan, Danny Cadamarteri
1998 – John O’Kane, Oliver Dacourt, Ibrahima Bakayoko
1999 – Kevin Campbell, Abel Xavier
Host Ben Osu, Everton FC’s Head of Inclusion, gave an introduction before passing the mic to
Peter Reid. The 1980s Everton and England star, who went on to manage Manchester City and
Sunderland, gave a short address, highlighting the continued importance of Show Racism The
Red Card, the organisation who worked on the exhibition with Everton FC. He paid special tribute
to the late Kevin Campbell and recalled coming up against Cliff Marshall in his youth football
days. Former Blues forward Danny Cadamarteri sent a message of support via a video
recording.
There followed speeches by Show Racism The Red Card’s Phil Kearns and Ged Grebby,
Unison General Secretary Andrea Egan and Iffy Onoura, Head of Race Equality and Inclusion
at the Premier League. Iffy, a boyhood Everton supporter who went on to have a long career
playing for clubs including Huddersfield Town and Gillingham FC, spoke of worshipping the likes
of Bob Latchford and Graeme Sharp as a youngster, but also of the difficulties experienced as a
young black man attending football matches in the 1970s and 1980s.
Show Racism the Red Card was founded thirty years ago 1996, in the wake of Newcastle
United goalkeeper Shaka Hislop experiencing racial abuse from youngsters at a petrol station – before they
realised he was one of their local football heroes. It has spread from the North East across
Britain. The message from the speakers on the night was clear – although there has been much
progress since 1996, racism has not been eliminated and, in the age of social media toxicity,
has found new ways to manifest itself.
The exhibition is open to the public from 1 October, in recognition of Black History Month, and
will be available to visitors on non-matchdays throughout the month.
(Trinity Place Bar, next to the Club Shop, Hill Dickinson Stadium)
Wear Red Day – 16th October 2026
(A tough ask for Evertonians, but an important cause – more details here: Wear Red Day).
More information on the Show Racism the Red Card website
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[Photos by Rob Sawyer and Mike Royden]
