Players – Page 16 – Everton FC Heritage Society

William H Parry, a former Captain of Everton Football Club

16

Aug

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1878-1889, 1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

William H Parry, a former Captain of Everton Football Club

The clean-shaven young man, seated on the right of the middle row, is an eighteen-year-old player who had recently established himself in the first eleven of an Everton Football Club at the time of the photograph. As he gazes towards the camera and watches for the 'birdie', he is unaware that, in the course of the forthcoming football season, he will score the goal that will earn his club the right to lift their first piece of silverware. His football career, however, is destined to be cut short by injury. William Henry Parry was born in 1864 in the north…

16

Aug

By Rob Sawyer

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1980-1989, 1990-1999, 2010-2019, History, Interview, Members Work, Players, Rob Sawyer

Tony Cottee – My Everton Years

Rob Sawyer in conversation with Tony Cottee The 1987-88 season had seen Everton, the reigning League Champions, give up their crown to their Mersey neighbours. Liverpool had countered the departure of Ian Rush by investing heavily in the acquisition of John Barnes, John Aldridge, Peter Beardsley and Ray Houghton. Conversely, Everton’s new manager, Colin Harvey, had kept faith in the tried and tested squad assembled by his predecessor, Howard Kendall. Come the following summer, Harvey, belatedly, decided that it was time to freshen up the squad. Neil McDonald replaced the Rangers-bound Gary Stevens, Pat Nevin came from Chelsea for a…

16

Aug

By Rob Sawyer

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1950-1959, 1960-1969, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Rob Sawyer

From West Derby to New South Wales: The Footballing Odyssey of Ian Hillsdon

By Rob Sawyer Ian Hillsdon with the Dixie Dean statue in 2003(courtesy Hillsdon family) For every local lad who makes the grade at Everton, scores fall by the wayside. Some teenagers fail to develop as expected, some lack the drive and mental toughness to succeed whilst others are just plain unlucky. Of those rejected some quietly slip out of the game, whilst others have a second chance at a lower league club. An intrepid few go further afield to fulfil their footballing dreams. A prime example of the latter category is Ian Hillsdon. Born in 1937, the left-back from…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, 1890-1899, 1900-1909, History, Managers, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Life and Times of Frank Brettell

The name of Everton forward Francis Edward Brettell first appeared on the Liverpool census in 1871 when he was reported as living at No 5 house, Court 13, on Boundary Street. His Father, William Brettell, listed his occupation as that of a nut and bolt maker, and gave his birthplace as West Bromwich in Staffordshire. His wife Harriet, the mother of Frank, was born in Devonshire. Nine year old Frank, born at Smethwick in Staffordshire, was the eldest of her three children. The premature death of Harriet, in 1881, saw Frank, along with rest of the family, move in with…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, 1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

A Christmas Tale from Liverpool

The retail stores of Liverpool had filled their windows with Christmas gifts to remind their potential customers that the festive season of 1888 was near, when a twenty years old Scotsman arrived at Tithebarn Railway Station to be greeted by the representatives of Everton Football Club. The weary traveller was John William Angus and he had been spotted while playing football in Glasgow, by a talent scout who dispatched him down to Liverpool, where he was to spend a trial period at Anfield. The Scot would have then been taken by the club conveyance, to meet the lady with whom…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Life of a Former Everton Captain

Nicholas John Ross, the Victorian version of the present-day soccer superstar, was a man who captained both Preston North End and Everton. He was the most feared defender of his generation and was described by the leading Victorian sports journalist, J A H Catton, as being "the most brilliant back of his day, if not of all time. The best I ever saw." Nick Ross, born in Edinburgh on 6 December 1862, was the second child of stonemason Thomas Ross and his wife Anne who was a shopkeeper. The 1871 census revealed that the Ross family were living at…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

Joseph Davies, the Welsh International from Shropshire

The graveyard photo shows the last resting place of Joseph Davies, who played for Everton during the season that they became founder members of the Football League. He was born on 27 June 1869, at St Martins in North West Shropshire and baptised at Preesgwyn Methodist Chapel. His parents, also born in St Martins, were Harriet and Stephen Davies, the latter a blacksmith at the local coal mine. The 1881 census shows the family as living in Chirk Bank Row in Weston Rhyn, where Joseph, along with his two brothers were still at school. On leaving education behind, he began…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1910-1919, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Oxford Blues of Everton Football Club

The young football fan who today watches the highly paid Premier League stars of the modern era will find it difficult to visualise the generation of footballers who, long ago, earned a good living outside of the game and played football without reward because they loved to do so. Confined mostly to the south of England, many of them had first become acquainted with the association game at public school and then expanded their knowledge and skills at universities such as Oxford. Here, if noted by the selectors, they could be chosen to represent their university and be awarded an…

The Magnificent Footballing Andersons of Liverpool

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, 1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Mike Royden, Players, Tony Onslow

The Magnificent Footballing Andersons of Liverpool

When asked recently who was the first Liverpool-born man to play Association Football for England or score a goal in an FA Cup final, I was not able to answer the question. I then commenced to trawl through the FA records, and after much deliberation, appeared to have found the two most likely candidates to fill these roles. I was surprised to discover that they both belong to the same family. Rupert Darnley Anderson was born on 29 April 1859 and baptised the following June at St Paul's church in the Princes Park area of Liverpool. He was the fifth…

Alex Lochhead, the Everton Wing Half from Neilston

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

Alex Lochhead, the Everton Wing Half from Neilston

Over the years many Everton players have been asked to make their debut in some tough 'must win' situations. But the first of these must surely be a young Scotsman who arrived in Liverpool during November 1891 at a time when his new club were challenging to take the Football League Championship away from Preston North End. Alexander Lochhead had been born 27 June 1865 in the rural community of Neilson in Renfrewshire, where he began his football career playing for the village team. His style of play soon caught the eye of a talent scout, who invited the young…