Steve Zocek

The British Home International competition had been a feature of the football calendar since 1883-84 season. This consisted of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In 1973 because of the civil unrest from the Northern Ireland conflict, Northern Ireland were ordered to play what would be their 'home' games at Goodison Park, the home of Everton. On the 12 May 1973 Northern Ireland faced England with the 'visitors' claiming a 2-1 victory. Former Everton player Tommy Jackson starred in the Irish line up that day. Tottenham’s Martin Chivers gave England the lead, then a penalty from Dave Clements, who would…

In 1966, England was the host nation for the world’s most glamourous football event. Seven cities were chosen to stage games, with Liverpool being one. London, Manchester, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Birmingham and Sheffield completed the set. Goodison Park in those days was a top stadium with great facilities and a capacity over 60,000. The stadium was admired and envied by many clubs in England, but this was to be shown to a worldwide audience. World champions Brazil played Bulgaria in Group 3 at Goodison Park on 12th July in front of 47,308 fans. There were no surprises, as Brazil led at the break,…

Those of us who have attended Goodison Park on a matchday have always been familiar with the figure of a lady dressed in a blue and white dress, an apron, quaint bonnet and carrying a basket of Everton mints. She tosses handfuls of the black and white humbugs into the sections of the stadium, as she walks the perimeter of the pitch, with eagerly awaiting fans clutching whatever they can catch. The fans take for granted this ritual, which goes back to a date we can’t be precise on, but the duty was certainly performed in the 1950’s and possibly…