Free Everton Tales eBook

For your free download click the link:

A collection of stories by and for Evertonians

Everton FC: Bill Kenwright's Best EGM Quotes

Everton FC: Bill Kenwright and his board of directors set to face third  EGM

Chairman

Since William Kenwright CBE eased himself in to the Everton chairman's seat back in 2004, the former Coronation Street actor has faced some searching questions from the club's minor shareholders. 

Despite the Everton hierarchy's best efforts to gag any form of dissent - both AGMs and EGMs being effectively banned as the  clubs Articles of Association were 'tweaked' - the small shareholders, having overcome the obstacles put before them by their chairman and board, have successfully forced a third EGM in nine years.

The Shareholders Association's reasons for forcing this EGM are simple and clear. They were left with no choice by an Everton chairman and board of directors who flatly refused to voluntarily reconvene an Annual General Meeting.

Now, on the eve of a meeting called with the aim of holding the current custodians to account, OTS brings you a selection of the best quotes from the 2004 EGM. And in doing so, perhaps offer a small insight into exactly why Everton Football Club's hierarchy were so keen to make it nigh on impossible for small shareholders to call for a minimum of corporate transparency. 

The Everton Football Club Company Limited, Extraordinary General Meeting, Thursday September 9, 2004

 

Bill Kenwright: "Of the hundreds of thousands of fans all over the world – and I meet them everywhere – on the streets of New York, on the streets of Australia, on the streets of Brixton. Someone’s always coming up to me and saying,“Hello Blue, how are you? How’s the team?" 

"The directors of Everton Football Club have also been deeply concerned with the current state of affairs and have been working 24 hours a day to make the club successful again. We obviously haven't succeeded – we’re not fools, we know that too - but it certainly hasn't been for the want of trying"

 

"We were close to doing a media deal with NTL when NTL went bust, out of  business in that particular area of its activities. It was literally on the day that we were accepting a cheque  for over £30m. Literally on the day. That was the very final major deal, not to be completed in this case, but after that there was no other major deal so we were in the ……whatever."

"Trevor Brooking said on television quite recently, 'I believe Bill Kenwright and his gang are the very last of the breed of chairmen who put their own money into football clubs.'  

"I don’t believe that will ever happen again."

"What’s clear going forward is that if we are to compete then we have to drive the revenue line forward rapidly. Our income is far far far under what it should be, what it has to be, what it’s got to be. 

In short, we have to come to accept that performance off the pitch is the only sustainable way to drive performance on the pitch and by that I mean the performances of the directors in knocking even more doors down – taking even more blondes out to supper."

"The People’s Club has to communicate with its supporters. There has to be an end to this kind of EGM. Other EGM’s…..smashing……but an EGM where you say, ‘hey guys, you’re crap, you’re doing it badly, we want you out’. If we’re to stay in, if we’re to run this Club there has to be better communication."

"I would say to you that if you had a Jack Walker, if you had a Jack Hayward, if you had a Roman Abramovich………..if you had one of those, you should go for it. 

I don’t think you have, I don’t think they’re around." 

“He (former CEO Trevor Birch) left the football club after seven weeks. I became chairman on the day he became chief executive. I’m not going to go into the private reasons why he left.”

 

Unknown: “Why not?”

Bill Kenwright: “Because I’m not going to."

Unknown: “Transparency?” 

Bill Kenwright: “It’s not transparency that Trevor desires.” 

Unknown: “He’s been silent.” 

Bill Kenwright: “He has indeed and he’s going to remain silent.”

Unknown: “Is that part of the deal?” 

Bill Kenwright: “And he’s going to remain silent.” 

Unknown: “But you won’t tell us why?” 

Bill Kenwright: “I will not.” 

Unknown: “Perhaps when this CEO goes you’ll tell us why?”

Bill Kenwright: “Thank you."

Unknown: “No answer I see.” 

Bill Kenwright: “No, you got a perfectly good answer. 

I’m not going to tell you.”

“The reported deal, the Fortress Sports Fund, is an absolute possibility and hopefully will be sewn up in the next few weeks.”

"I got the Private Eye thing that you sent to me and thank you very much for sending it to me. I got it checked out immediately and I think it’s going to be the subject of a court case. And obviously as a football club we’ve done all of the searches that you need and all the names mentioned, they’ve all come out A1"

"To find a Geneva based institution that has got a lot of money; that is interested in putting money into the football club. It has been a long hard trawl. It’s something to be celebrated personally.”

"There’s going to be a new share issue. So they (Fortress Sports Fund) are not going to give the money to go into the football club. The idea is, contract, is for two share issues of a year or two years which will hopefully bring us about £30m – and from the way I talk to them, that will be a minimum and they want to invest again."

“You know, and I know, I am not going to answer that question.Because of confidentiality but Philip Green has been an extraordinary supporter and worked by my side for the last three months, and I’ve needed it, believe me.”

“I will remain the Chairman. I suppose if you put a lot of money in…..does Abramovich have control of Chelsea? Yes, he absolutely does. If they get fifty one per cent……..but they’re not going to get fifty one per cent."

More quotes from the second forced (2008) EGM can be read here.

The third forced EGM will be held in the Liverpool Philarmonic Hall,
Hope Street on Wednesday June 26 at 6.00 pm.

By changing the Articles of Association to remove Annual General
Meetings from the agenda, the current major shareholders of Everton
have enjoyed 5 years of unaccountability. This week, a number of
Evertonians will be attempting to overturn this self-serving decision.

We wish them all the very best.

NSNO

Everton FC: Liverpool City Council Buy Finch Farm

Property Management Company DTZ Were Entrusted With The Sale Of Finch Farm

 

 

Finch Farm Training Complex Changes Hands For A Third Time

While rumours of the possible sale of Finch Farm, the training complex rented by Everton FC have tonight been unsurprisingly confirmed, the name of the proprietor, Liverpool City Council, has certainly come as an unexpected turn up for the books. 

Previous owners, Hudson Capital Properties had back in October 2011 put the land and complex up for sale for 'offers in excess of £15,356,000.' 

According to a Land Registry document, Liverpool City Council bought Finch Farm on May 24 2013, for a knock down £12.925m. The terms of the lease arrangement, with previous owners of the site Everton now tied in to a 50 year tenancy, including fixed rental increases, remain in place. 

A rolling 5-year option for Everton to buy back the property, one they refused to implement in 2012, also remains within the lease agreement.

Given the more than frosty relationship over the last decade and beyond between Everton and Liverpool City Council, the clubs hierarchy will no doubt be aiming for a more amicable business relationship with their new landlords.

Neither Liverpool City Council nor Everton FC have as yet commented on the multimillion pound deal. 

In other news, The Everton FC Shareholders’ Association have announced the Club has confirmed the date and venue for the forced Emergency General Meeting. The EGM will take place in
the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Hope Street on Wednesday 26th June at 6.00 pm.  

With a capacity of 1700 at 'The Phil,' the show of hands to (re)amend the Articles of Association to force the reinstatement of the tradition of holding formal Annual General Meetings will not be a close run thing. 

I'm going for 1695 'for' and 5 'against.'

Goodison Park - The Grand Old Lady Part 2

 

Goodison Park 1939-1940

 

Everton FC: The Story Of The Grand Old Lady

 

“Goodison Park is for me the best stadium of my life.” - Eusébio

The intervening years between Dixie Dean’s record breaking season and England’s hosting of the 1966 World Cup, had seen Goodison Park subjected to numerous changes, development and reconstruction. 

As integral as anybody in the metamorphosis of the stadium was Scottish architect Archibald Leitch whom, in the first half of the 20th century, was the British Isles foremost football stadia architect. 

Leitch, who was responsible for part or all of the stadium designs at more than 30 clubs up and down the country, had in 1938, with the completion of the new Gwladys Street stand, achieved his 30 year Goodison Park dream. The ground had now become the first entire two tiered stadium in the country.

On September 18, 1940, the Grand Old Lady had also, by the skin of her teeth, survived the Luftwaffe blitz of Liverpool. Confirming the near miss in the Everton Football Club Minutes Book, the secretary’s recordings allow a fascinating insight into the event, as well as a clear understanding of the ‘keep calm and carry on’ attitude towards the German bombing of the city. Raids that would span more than two years in total:

War Damage

 

'The Directors inspected the damage done by enemy action on the night of the 18th inst. & it was agreed that the Secretary make arrangements to have necessary repairs made. 

It was also decided that Messrs A. Leitch be instructed to value the cost of complete renewal of damaged properties & that a claim should be forwarded to the War Damage Claims department within the prescribed 30 Days. The damage referred to included:

The demolition of a large section of the New Stand outer wall in Gwladys Street destruction of all glass in this Stand; damage to every door, canteen, water & electricity pipes and all lead fittings, perforated roof in hundreds of places.
 
On Bullens Road side, a bomb dropped in the school-yard had badly damaged the exterior wall of this stand and the roof was badly perforated here also. 

A third bomb outside the practice ground had demolished the surrounding hoarding and had badly damaged glass in the Goodison Avenue and Walton Lane property. The Secretary estimated the extent of the damage at about £1,500.'

Goodison Park had survived, and with her, the magnificent legacy of Archibald Leitch. One that lives on as vividly today as it has throughout the last hundred years. 

The signature Leitch criss-crossed steel balustrades remaining as much a part of Everton Football Club’s iconic history as the great Dixie Dean, the Toffee Lady and the depiction within the clubs famous crest of Prince Rupert’s Tower.

The Greatest Show On Earth

 

1966 Golden Boot Winner The Legendary Eusebio

The summer of 1966 in Liverpool must have been heady days indeed for supporters of both the city's football clubs. As the red half of the city were still celebrating a first division championship, the blue half returned triumphantly from Wembley after seeing their heroes overturn a 2-0 deficit, to snatch the FA Cup away from opponents Sheffield Wednesday. 

Only a matter of weeks later, the greatest footballing show on the planet rolled into town as Goodison Park, selected as a host stadium of the 1966 FIFA World Cup, welcomed seven nations onto her hallowed turf.

Playing host to five World Cup fixtures, including three group games, a quarter-final and a semi-final, the stadium witnessed the magic of footballing greats such as Pele, Garrincha, Beckenbauer, Haller and the tournaments outstanding player and Golden Boot winner, Portugal’s Eusébio da Silva Ferreira. 

The Benfica striker would fire six of his nine goal haul at Goodison Park, with four of those coming in one of the most extraordinary football matches in the history of the game.

July 23 1966, Portugal vs North Korea, Goodison Park

 

The unknown and secretive North Koreans, who, despite having earlier shocked the tournament into life with a giant killing 1-0 victory over Italy, arrived for this World Cup quarter-final as the overwhelming underdogs. 

They would meet Eusébio’s Portugal who had, four days earlier put pre-tournament favourites Brazil, to the sword at Goodison Park. Those fans fortunate enough to be inside Goodison that day, could never have imagined the rollercoaster of a football match they were about to witness.

Belying their status in the game, and seemingly indifferent to their opponents’ reputation, the Koreans immediately went on the attack and within a minute of the kick off, a sensational strike at the Gwladys Street End from Pak Seung Zin, had put the minnows in front. 

Portugal were shell shocked and with the 40,248 inside Goodison Park roaring them on, North Korea were seemingly unstoppable.

A swift Korean counter on 22 minutes, after Eusébio had failed to convert a Portuguese attack, saw goalkeeper Pereira badly misjudge a cross and when the ball was returned, Li Dong Woon was on hand to send the Koreans and Goodison Park into raptures. 

Incredibly, the underdogs were not finished there as just three minutes later, Yang Sung Kook, following in on a deflected shot, composed himself and arrowed the ball into the far corner of the Portuguese net.

Three down after 25 minutes and with his team in disarray, it would be left to Portugal’s best player, top scorer and captain to almost single handedly drag his team back into the World Cup. 

Eusébio, the man nicknamed the ‘Black Pearl,’ gave his country some much needed hope, finding the top corner of the Park End goal before racing back to the centre circle with the ball under one arm.

On 43 minutes, Eusébio converted from the penalty spot after centre forward Jose Torres was brought down in the box. By the 56th minute, Portugal were level.

Picking up the ball in his own half, Eusébio drove forward and after playing a one-two, the ‘Black Pearl’ slammed a shot past Li Chan Myong in the Korean goal. Just three minutes later, the Portuguese were in front as the unstoppable Eusébio scored his fourth goal and second from the spot. 

The North Korean dream was eventually ended as the four goal hero turned provider, with his corner kick finding Jose Augusto to make it 5-3 to Portugal.

Eusébio’s Portugal would fall in the semi-final to eventual World Champions England, however his remarkable performance that summer afternoon will forever be enshrined in the annals of legends who have graced this historic stadium.

Likewise, the 1966 North Korean team, who shocked, thrilled and enthralled the world, at the Grand Old Lady of English football, Goodison Park.


1966 FIFA World Cup Games at Goodison Park

 

Group Games

12 July, Brazil 2 - 0 Bulgaria
15 July, Hungary 3 - 1 Brazil
19 July, Portugal 3 - 1 Brazil

Quarter-Final

23 July, Portugal 5 - 3 North Korea

Semi-Final

25 July, West Germany 2 - 1 Soviet Union


Acknowledgements:

The Everton Collection
Planet World Cup

​
Coming soon On OTS: 
A look back at the all conquering Everton of the mid-Eighties:

Goodison Park: The Grand Old Lady - Part 3



Goodison Park - The Grand Old Lady Part 1

 

Goodison Park - The Home Of Everton Football Club

Everton FC: The Story Of The Grand Old Lady

 

“It wouldn't matter if we had Dixie Dean playing for us, it's always a bloody nightmare going to Goodison Park.” - Sir Alex Ferguson

On 28 September, 1884, Everton Football Club beat Earlestown 5-0 in their brand new home. Due to the rapidly growing interest in Association Football and the sheer numbers of spectators Everton home games were attracting, the club had no choice but to relocate the short distance from Priory Road to a new venue owned by local landowner Mr. John Orrell.

A friend of the club, as well as Everton chairman Mr. John Houlding, Orrell had offered land to the club for a modest payment in rent.

The inaugural Football League match at the ground, played almost four years later on September 18, 1888, was contested between Everton and Accrington. 

Everton’s tenure at the stadium would see the club turn professional, become a founder member of the English Football League, first compete in the FA Cup, introduce goal nets to Association Football and be crowned Football League champions for the season 1890-91. The following year would be Everton Football Club’s final season as tenants of Anfield.

The reasons behind the clubs relocation from Anfield were many and complex and are well documented. Boil those reasons down and the conclusion as to why, is as relative now as it was over one hundred and twenty years ago; cold hard cash. Some things it seems, actually never do change. 

The irreparable fracture of the clubs board of directors forced Everton out of Anfield, a break that would in 1892 see director George Mahon lead the club to England’s first purpose built football stadium.

Albeit not for the want of trying, and failings, of more recent chairmen, 121 years later, Goodison Park, remains the home of Everton Football Club to this day. 

In this special feature, we recall three 20th century matches played at Goodison Park, each one, for very different reasons, a defining moment in the long and glorious history of the Grand Old Lady of English football.

The Unbreakable - Broken

In season 1926/27 of the English second division, Middlesbrough and later, England centre forward, George Camsell, in his first full season at the club, scored a remarkable 59 league goals which would fire Boro’ to the championship and promotion to the top flight. It was a goal scoring achievement many thought would never be broken.

Only a few months later, in the second match of season 1927/28, Camsell’s Boro met an Everton team led by another colossal young centre forward, William Ralph ‘Dixie’ Dean. The newly promoted second division champions came away with a famous victory, with George Camsell firing all four goals in a 4-2 win. 

However, it would be Everton who went on to be crowned first division champions that year, whilst Boro were relegated. Incredibly, aged just 21, Dixie Dean would go on to take George Camsell’s ‘unbreakable’ scoring record, by just the one solitary goal.

05 May, 1928, Everton vs Arsenal, Goodison Park

 

Legendary Everton Centre Forward William Ralph 'Dixie' Dean

You could be forgiven for thinking the Evertonians who had crammed into Goodison Park on that early May afternoon, had done so solely to salute the newly crowned English first division champions. There was however, another very specific reason for the 48,715 supporters to make their fortnightly pilgrimage that fateful day.

The final game of the 1927/28 season at Goodison Park would see Harry Cooke’s Everton meet Herbert Chapman’s revered Arsenal side, yet all eyes would be transfixed on just one man, Everton’s record chasing centre forward Dixie Dean. 

His race to surpass George Camsell’s ‘unbreakable’ feat had been on course throughout the season. Dean had found the net in all of the first nine games, including a consolation goal, as Camsell netted four for Boro, as well as banging in all five in a 5-2 rout of Manchester United. 

By the turn of the year, the footballing fraternity began to believe in the unbelievable, when on New Year’s Eve at Sheffield Wednesday, the goal hungry Dean bagged his 32nd and 33rd goals in just 23 games. The Birkenhead born centre forward’s unquenchable thirst for goals continued unabated into 1928. With a run of 11 strikes in the following eight games, the highlight of which being a hat trick in a 3-3 draw at Anfield.

Those three goals however, would see Dixie Dean and Everton go on a four game run without scoring. Suddenly the tilt at George Camsell’s season old record was thrown into doubt. A Dean double at Derby County put a halt to the poor run of form, yet despite further braces against Blackburn, Sheffield United and Aston Villa, Camsell’s record haul would stand, unless that was, Everton giant Dean could find seven goals in his final two games.

Everton’s penultimate fixture, a short journey to face Burnley at Turf Moor ended in a 5-3 victory for the men in Royal Blue. The Lancashire derby would see Dean grabbing four of the seven goals he needed. Now, with 57 goals in 38 games, it was as if Dixie Dean had written his own thrilling script. The final act of which was to be played out in front of the adoring Evertonians at Goodison Park. One game to play, three goals to score......

Arsenal, who had not travelled North to make up any numbers, came quickly out of the traps, scoring the opener within a couple of minutes. Everton, the champions, replied with an inevitable Dixie Dean header and then, just on half-time, Dean equalled George Camsell’s record goal haul. 

After being dragged down in the box, Dean stepped up to convert his 59th goal of the season from the penalty spot. As the clock ticked ever down and with just minutes left to play, the 60 goal dream was hanging by a thread when, on 85 minutes, Everton forced another corner. The Toffees Scottish outside-left, Alec Troup, floated his cross into the danger area and, as time stood still at Goodison Park, William Ralph ‘Dixie’ Dean rose majestically above the Arsenal defence to bury his header past the Gunners goalkeeper, William Paterson.

With that Goodison goal, Dixie Dean had overhauled George Camsell’s record. A truly astonishing accomplishment. In the 39 games the Everton legend appeared in that season, Dean found the net in 31 of them, with 14 braces and 7 hat tricks, including a 4 and 5 goal haul against Burnley and Manchester United respectively.

An eyewitness account, as documented in his ‘History Of The Everton Football Club 1878/9–1928/9,’ by Everton historian and author Thomas Keates, epitomises the sense of unbridled joy, unchecked wonder and no little relief experienced by all who attended the Grand Old Lady that spring afternoon in 1928. 

Those Evertonian souls lucky enough to have witnessed Dixie Dean’s mind blowing achievement.

"You talk about explosions, and loud applause; we have heard many explosions, and much applause in our long pilgrimage, but, believe us, we have never heard such a prolonged roar of thundering, congratulatory applause before as to that which ascended to heaven when Dixie broke the record."

The Dixie Dean Monument At Goodison Park

Dean’s record of achievement, at both domestic and national levels, is extensive and beyond remarkable. However, it surely has to be his extraordinary feat of scoring 60 English top flight league goals in one season, that shall remain the most celebrated record of them all.
​
​

Acknowledgements:


Everton Results

@stevejohnson95

The Everton Collection

Thomas Keates, History Of The Everton Football Club 1878/9–1928/9, Desert Island Books



The Grand Old Lady Part 2

Everton vs Manchester City FA Cup Final 1933

The 1933 FA Cup Final Programme

29 April at Wembley Stadium

Attendance: 92,950

Everton 3 (Stein 41’, Dean 52’, Dunn 80’)
vs
Manchester City 0

 

Everton: Sagar, Cook, Cresswell, Britton, White,
Thomson, Geldard, Dunn, Dean, Johnson, Stein.

Manchester City: Langford, Cann, Dale, Busby,
Cowan, Bray, Toseland, Marshall, Herd, Mcmullan, Brook.

Referee: Mr. E. Wood. Sheffield.

The afternoon of Saturday 29 April, 1933, was a rain soaked one in London. Earlier the same day, a violent thunder storm had broken across the capital. The late night edition of the London Evening Standard reported the absence of the King at the 1933 FA Cup Final was due to ‘the uncertain weather,’ but thankfully, for the 92,950 football supporters who had braved the elements and packed into Wembley Stadium, come 3 o'clock, the downpour had abated.

For the eventual victors, Everton, this would be a momentous, memorable FA Cup final in more ways than one. Promoted as 1930-31 Second Division champions, crowned Football League Champions in 1931-32 and now, in 1933, with the biggest winning margin in the final for 18 years, convincing 3-0 winners of the FA Cup. This was a sequence of success never before or since accomplished and, undoubtedly, one never to be repeated. Everton Football Club found themselves at one of the highest pinnacle’s of their long illustrious history.

The 1933 final would be Everton’s second cup final win, the first at Wembley, and remain the only FA Cup final appearance for Everton legends, goalkeeper Ted Sagar and the goal scoring phenomenon that was Dixie Dean. It would also be 33 years before the club tasted another FA Cup final victory.

This, the 62nd final and just the 11th to be held at Wembley, will also forever be remembered as the first in which the players were allocated and wore numbered shirts. The Everton players wore 1 to 11, with ‘keeper Sagar taking the number 1 jersey and Dean, sporting the now legendary strikers signature, number 9. That superstar Dean should be the first to wear the iconic ‘9’ shirt, is certainly a fitting tribute to arguably the greatest ever centre-forward. Wembley opponents, Manchester City, were allocated numbers 12 to 22, with outside-left Eric Brook wearing 12 and the Citizens ‘keeper Langford, donning the number 22 shirt.

Tickets for the all Lancashire final, with standing in the East Enclosure priced at a grand ‘2/6 (including tax),’ were as gold dust and reported to have been sold out ‘weeks’ before the event. This prompted The Guardian to forewarn ticketless supporters of ‘ten miles of barbed wire’ to be strategically placed around the stadium in the hope of preventing ‘unauthorised entry.’

On the day of the final, The London Evening News ran with a front page spread, including a biographical entry on each player and portrait photographs of the probable line-ups, as well as a wonderful headline and description of the exodus of supporters from the North West of England to London:

‘Lancashire Invades London For Cup Final - 200,000 Visitors Arrive In The Early Hours
Lancashire invaded London today for the Football Association Cup Final - Manchester City v. Everton - at Wembley. The first train-load arrived at 3 a.m, and from then until 9 o’clock 140 special trains brought 200,000 football fans from all over the country.

At least half of them do not even hope to get inside the ground - it holds fewer than 100,000 -  and all tickets were sold weeks ago. No decision has yet been made whether the King will be present; it all depends on the weather.

Manchester lads are a bit worried. Their forward line will not be chosen until just before the kick-off for there is still some doubt whether Tilson’s injured leg will be fit enough for him to play.’

The Manchester ‘lads’ worries were proved to be fully justified. Fred Tilson’s leg apparently failed to be ‘fit enough’ and City’s top scorer would miss the final. Manager Wilf Wild, chose to move Alec Herd from inside-right to centre-forward and brought in Bobby Marshall to replace the injured Tilson.

It would be Dixie Dean, in consultation with Ted Sagar, who would pick the managerless Everton side. The team selection was not without controversy as Dean took the decision to drop semi-final match winner Ted Critchley in favour of the precocious teenage outside-right, Albert Geldard. 

With the weather proving too much for King George V, the teams were, according to The Times, introduced to guests of honour the Duke and Duchess of York who were joined by a wide range of the great and good at Wembley that afternoon, including Lord Derby, chairman of the Football Association Sir Charles Clegg, Austrian envoy Baron von Franckenstein and the touring West Indies cricket team!

The packed crowd were entertained pre-match with a somewhat eclectic mix of tunes. Led by The Band of His Majesty's Irish Guards, ‘The Programme Of Music’ ranged from ‘The Soldiers Of The King’ march, to a waltz medley entitled ‘The Gay 90’s.’  The Irish Guards also threw in ‘The Teddy Bears Picnic’ for good measure.

The revelry continued with ‘Community Singing,’ led by conductor Mr. T. P. Ratcliffe, accompanied by His Majesty’s Royal and Blues Horse Guards Band. The climax to the proceedings followed at 2.50 p.m. as the 92,950 supporters rose as one, to belt out a stirring rendition of ‘God Save The King.’

Once Sheffield referee, Mr. Eddie Wood, had ordered the captains to the centre circle, it was Everton skipper Dean who won the toss and chose to kick-off with ‘the sun on our backs.’ An earlier flipping of a coin had seen Manchester City given the choice of determining the teams colours. With the clubs usually running out in blue, the FA’s ruling, requiring both teams to wear alternative colours, was invoked. Thankfully for Evertonians, the Manchester club decided upon wearing red, meaning Everton would play in the specially-tailored-for-the-final, white shirts, black shorts and black socks with royal blue trimmings.

A triumphant Everton led by Dixie Dean

 As both teams lined-up, in the familiar to the era 2-3-5 formation, it was Everton who quickly took control of the game, with imperious captain Dean leading the way. The City right-back, Sid Cann, was given a torrid time by flying outside-left Jimmy Stein, and it was the Scot, that will forever have the distinction of being Everton’s first ever Wembley goal scorer, who gave Everton a 41st minute lead. Under pressure from the on-rushing Dixie Dean, the Manchester City goalkeeper Len Langford, fumbled a Cliff Britton cross, allowing Stein to steal in and find the empty net with his right foot. It would not be the last time Langford was to see Dixie Dean on this historic afternoon.

It was City who came out with the greater purpose after the break yet, despite plenty of possession, they failed to breach a strong Everton defence. With goalkeeper Ted Sagar largely untroubled, it was Everton who doubled their lead seven minutes into the second half. Once more, City ‘keeper Langford failed to deal with yet another accurate Britton centre from the right, and inevitably, it was left to the predator Dean to put the ball, the goalkeeper and himself into the City net.

At 2-0 down, Manchester City pushed to get back in the game but the Toffees defence held firm, with the stand-out ‘Prince of full-backs’ Warney Cresswell, putting in an ‘almost perfect performance’ on the left flank of the Everton back line.

In the 80th minute, the near 50,000 Evertonians inside Wembley could finally begin celebrating in earnest. The City defence, including a young Matt Busby at right-half back, failed to deal with an Albert Geldard corner and the 5ft. 6ins. ‘wee’ Jimmy Dunn rose majestically above his marker to head home the Toffee’s third.

The 1933 FA Cup was secured and it was the great William Ralph ‘Dixie’ Dean who led his team up the famous steps to the Wembley royal box. There he received the iconic trophy from the Duchess of York.

The Manchester City captain, Sam Cowan, was later gracious in defeat: “We have no quarrel. Dean was an inspiration to his men, and the whole 11 played awfully well.”

Cowan would go on to lead Manchester City to FA Cup glory the following season.

But 1933 was Everton’s year, and Dean could now add a FA Cup winners medal to his two Football League Championships to cement his place in world football’s hall of fame. When mentioning the great man’s name, it would be remiss not to recall his mind-blowing goal scoring achievements; in a career stretching 16 years, Dixie Dean scored an incredible total of 473 goals in 502 games, including an amazing 37 hat-tricks. In the 1927-28 season, aged just 21, Dean led Everton to the English Football League Championship with a return of 60 league goals. A record that will surely always be out of reach.

After celebrating with a glitzy winners reception and dinner in the Edward VII rooms, at the aptly named Victoria Hotel in London, the triumphant Everton team eventually returned to Liverpool on the following Monday, where they received a hero’s welcome from huge crowds gathered at the Town Hall. Here the players were honoured with a civic reception by the Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Alfred Gates. Evertonians later lined the streets from the city centre and up to Walton and Goodison Park, as the players paraded the FA Cup aboard a replica of the horse-drawn carriage previously used for the club's first FA cup win, back in 1906.

From the ever reliable Ted Sagar (app. 495) in goal, the strong yet classy defending of Cliff Britton (240) (3), Billy Cook (250) (6), Tommy White (201) (66), and Warney Cresswell (306) (1). The midfield pace, trickery and goal threat offered by Jimmy Stein (215) (65), Jimmy Dunn (155) (49) and Albert Geldard (179) (37), complemented by the strength of Jock Thompson (296) (5). The precision passing and vision of Tommy Johnson (161) (65),  and of course, the force of will, the leadership and naturally, the goal return of the immense William Ralph ‘Dixie’ Dean (431) (377). The 1933 FA Cup winning team will rightly be remembered as one of the greatest to represent Everton Football Club. Very few teams, before or since, have been more deserving of such an accolade. Eight Englishmen, two Scots and a Northern Irishman, who, after a 27 year hiatus, brought the cup back to Goodison Park.

Everton FC: The 1933 Road To Wembley:
 
Rd. 3: Leicester vs Everton: 2-3 (Dean, Stein, Dunn)
Rd. 4: Everton vs Bury: 3-1 (Johnson x 2, Dean)
Rd. 5: Everton vs Leeds United: 2-0 (Dean, Stein)
Rd. 6: Everton vs Luton Town: 6-0 (Stein x 2, Johnson x 2, Dunn, Dean)
S/F. Molineux: Everton vs West Ham United: 2-1 (Dunn, Critchley)

​
*Much of the research for this piece was gathered using the fantastic resource that is The Everton Collection website. Visit, use and enjoy it, here:
http://www.evertoncollection.org.uk/home

The Colin Fitzpatrick Interview, Part Two

Everton supporter, Secretary of Keeping Everton In Our City (KEIOC) and Communications Officer of Everton supporters umbrella group The Blue Union, Colin Fitzpatrick speaks openly and frankly on his past dealings with the Everton hierarchy, the press and media, football activism, and his hopes and fears for the future of his beloved Everton Football Club.

The Blue Union March Filled Goodison Road

The ‘calling in’ of the Destination Kirkby planning application sounded the death knell for Bill Kenwright’s horribly flawed attempt to relocate Everton Football Club out of the City of Liverpool. Yet again, and despite the pre-public inquiry resignation of original ‘Kirkby champion,’ Keith Wyness, KEIOC’s warnings to the clubs major shareholders of the madness of pressing on with the doomed scheme, fell on deaf ears.

The blind refusal to accept any sort of advice from any individual or group, who were not their own paid advisors, or those of their partners in the scheme, would cost the club millions of pounds it could ill afford to throw away. Arguably even more critical to the clubs future, would be the loss of yet more years, wasted on the folly of Bill Kenwright and his board of directors.

Colin Fitzpatrick is clear on why the ‘calling in’ was the final nail in the club’s Kirkby coffin. “The truth is the fate of Destination Kirkby was not determined by the Public Inquiry. The inquiry was the execution, a very public execution of a property con that would have succeeded if the government hadn't called the application in, which meant it would then undergo the strict planning examination it avoided when passed on the nod of the sheep that are the unswerving servants of Knowsley's Labour Party.”

More than a year prior to the opening of the public inquiry, KEIOC set in motion a pivotal intervention which, despite a report in the Liverpool Daily Post to the contrary, would see Liverpool City Council, join Sefton Borough Council, and Lancashire County Council in opposing the Destination Kirkby application.

As far as Everton's stadium was concerned its fate was actually sealed on a typically bright and sunny June Liverpool morning when the monstrous application went before Liverpool City Council's Planning Committee. KEIOC had been concerned that the planning officers report on the application was weak and failed to offer the "right" guidance to the council's planning committee.

“Liverpool, as a neighbouring authority, had the right to support or oppose the application, so KEIOC lobbied first the leader of the council and then, the leader of the opposition group, current Mayor Joe Anderson. Both had been supportive of KEIOC in the past, in fact in the previous year KEIOC went to great lengths to have the City Council adopt a resolution supporting keeping Everton in the city. Strangely for a planning meeting the council chamber was packed. Mostly with Evertonians affiliated to KEIOC, who watched what was later described at the public inquiry by the counsel of Tesco and Everton as, ‘an unprecedented event.’ First of all Warren Bradley rose to address the planning committee, then Joe Anderson and finally, KEIOC chairman Dave Kelly. Needless to say the City opposed the application unanimously and even described it as little more than a con for a very good reason....it was!”

In the run up to the opening of the public inquiry, the opposition to Destination Kirkby was becoming overwhelming with amongst others, the neighbouring local authorities, MPs and councillors, joining KEIOC, retail giants Grosvenor, developers St. Modwens and various Kirkby residents groups in objecting to the ‘scorched earth’ planning application.

For KEIOC’s part, whilst their aim was abundantly transparent to all at the inquiry, it would be their focus on presenting a coherent, relevant opposing case, combined with producing the crucial ‘closing statement,’ that would concentrate their minds.

“We were advised by many, in particular a nationally known figure and a well known QC whose advice was clear. Get it called in and no matter what happens during the inquiry, no matter how many dirty tricks were played against us, we just needed to concentrate on delivering a powerful closing statement as this is what our objection was really going to be measured on.”

It must have been an extraordinary sight for the multi billion pound backed QC’s of Tesco, Everton and KMBC, as a ragtag bunch of Evertonians promptly entered the Kirkby Suite at 10:00 am on Wednesday, November 19, 2008. It was a portrayal Fitzpatrick and his colleagues were only too pleased to fulfill. Given the huge resources available to the applicants at the public inquiry, to describe the forthcoming nine weeks as a David and Goliath battle, can only be a fitting characterization.

“On reflection, I think we initially bit off a bit more than we could chew in getting involved in the inquiry. It was very similar to a law court environment and without doubt the QC's, barristers and lawyers were in their element. We, on the other hand, were fish out of water but fish that would learn very quickly and stand our ground. Dirty tricks were employed against us but we also weren't averse to doing the same. I can't go into too much detail but someone who shall be nameless had a terrible habit of responding to inquiry officials by email and then later accidentally copying them in on other emails with private documents attached in full knowledge that a certain amount of gossiping was taking place!! Oh how we played the enthusiastic amateur card, Bill (Kenwright) would have been proud!!!”


After 37 working days of argument and counter argument, the no nonsense planning inspector and chair of the public inquiry, Mrs Wendy Burden, invited all parties to present their crucial closing statements. Not though, before KEIOC lightened the mood by presenting Everton CEO Robert Elstone with a Keep Everton In Our City - car sticker, which was gratefully received by the second club CEO to have worked on the Kirkby project. And with the inquiry programme officer sporting a fetching Everton shirt with her name ‘PARKER,’ emblazoned on the back, the proponents and opponents of Destination Kirkby, prepared themselves for the finale of a nine week marathon.

“The day came that we were waiting for, at the very end of the inquiry. When your closing statement was delivered. Unlike during the rest of the inquiry, you were not interrupted by anybody. I suppose the inquiry people had by now rumbled that we were a bit more organised than we let on. At the beginning of the inquiry we delivered box after box of inquiry documents, all professionally bound and containing more evidence than even Everton had submitted. 

Everton CEO Robert Elstone

The closing statement was prepared by myself, and the meff who's writing this article!!!

Instead of delivering an impassioned plea about Everton leaving the city, it was planning objection after planning objection after planning objection, and we left in the full knowledge that we gave it our best and that, it was inevitable it was going to be refused permission by the secretary of state.”

In closing the public inquiry, and regardless of the rather desperate pleas of the Tesco, Everton and KMBC representatives for the inspector to ‘fast track’ her decision, Mrs. Burden indicated that due to the sheer size and complexity of the planning application, it would be at least six months before the inquiry report could be ready to go to the Secretary of State for consideration. Despite regular contradictory noises from both Everton, Tesco and the local press, it would in fact be a full 10 months before the new Secretary of State, John Denham MP, would deliver the final axe to the neck of Destination Kirkby.

The intervening months between the climax of the public inquiry and final decision, allowed KEIOC to once again focus its attention on exploring alternative plans for the Everton stadium issue. Unlike the club, who had stubbornly and blindly put all their eggs in the Tesco basket, KEIOC were and remain open to investigate all possible avenues. A case in point and one that is possibly more relevant today as it has ever been, is the spiky and perennial debate around a shared stadium for Everton and Liverpool football clubs. Colin’s work with architect and stadium designer Trevor Skempton, only served to reinforce his views on the myriad of complex difficulties a shared stadium throws up.

“After the inquiry, we investigated alternative solutions to Everton's stadium problem. Myself and Trevor Skempton produced quite a substantial document looking into the possibilities of a shared stadium and presented it to both the leader of the council and the leader of the opposition group in the leaders office. It was an interesting exercise, sited in the area around Liverpool Waters, it was purely a design concept that addressed the potential problems of a shared stadium in many innovative ways. Two problems with the concept were relatively insurmountable. Firstly Bradley took the concept to John Whittaker at Peel and he had no interest in a stadium whatsoever. The second problem is that Everton and Liverpool have such diverse target markets that it would be relatively impossible and completely undesirable to accommodate such a potentially compromising situation, particularly for Everton. People who unthinkingly state that a shared stadium is the best solution for the City are complete idiots in my opinion.”

Very nearly 3 years had passed since Keith Wyness announced Everton’s plan of relocating to Kirkby, when, in late November, 2009, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, John Denham MP, revealed the joint Tesco, Everton, KMBC Destination Kirkby planning application had been rejected.

Prior to the full inspectorate report being published, a formal letter from the Secretary of State’s office, spelt out the main conclusions against the development to the interested parties. The scheme, as KEIOC, back in the early summer of 2007 had correctly predicted, had breached a raft of national and regional planning policy. The whole project was rejected outright. According to a senior aide of Mr. Denham MP,  “when it came to the crunch, the Secretary of State had no other option.”

All parties with a vested interest in the planning application, whether for or against, were made aware a decision was imminent 24 hours before the official word was broken.  It was a very nervy time for almost all Everton supporters, as Colin recalls.

“The day before the decision, which I think was the Wednesday, we knew an announcement was being made the next day, we even put it on our site which was probably a bad move as the phones never stopped. I remember, I think it was Billy Thorndyke, better known in Everton circles as Billy Bullens, who said “everyone was panicking except Dave (Kelly) and Colin.” People were on a roller coaster of emotions but I never doubted the politicians and experts we'd had, they were a great bunch of Evertonians. Even our QC was a blue!!

When the announcement came, in the early evening, the phones were ringing off the hook, a lot of KEIOC were at Hull City for the game. One guy on the way to Hull, and convinced the decision was going to go against us, drank a bottle of Jack Daniels to commiserate and drank another on the way home to celebrate!! We didn't gloat or anything, the three or four line announcement of the decision is still on the KEIOC site.”

In the aftermath of the rejection, Bill Kenwright broke his longterm  silence on Destination Kirkby when quoted in the Liverpool Echo, on November 29.

Kenwright oversaw the Kirkby debacle

“The first thing to say in terms of Kirkby is that the chapter is over and the book is closed. The motivation has only ever been to improve the finances of the football club. They need to be stabilised, improved and expanded. As everyone knows, the club doesn't currently have a chairman or a board in a position to do those things.”

It was, when you take into consideration the storm that had surrounded the Kirkby project, an understated, somewhat anaemic, throwaway statement from the Everton chairman. It was as though he had neither a hand in the project, nor any comprehension of the effect on the fanbase.  As if he hadn’t been at all affected by it.

Whilst some fans called for Kenwright’s head, others, including some local journalists, urged the Everton chairman to lead the club into a reconciliation process, a call to bring the club and supporters together. Regrettably, none of those things were to happen.

Throughout the duration of KEIOC’s Kirkby campaign, the relations between the group, Everton and various other interested parties, including the press and media, varied over time, sometimes wildly. Fitzpatrick has no qualms in expressing some sympathy with local journalists whom, at the time, had produced more balanced reports that ‘simply weren’t published,’ nor in revealing a ‘reasonable relationship’ between KEIOC and the then fresh faced CEO, Robert Elstone.

Sadly for all concerned, and more than three years on since the Kirkby project met its end, the relations between supporters groups and the club leadership, are in effect, irrevocably damaged.

The Blue Union was a coming together of various concerned Everton supporter groups with a similar purpose and design. As Communications Officer of the supporters umbrella organisation, Fitzpatrick passionately explains its origins.

“The Blue Union was a tremendous solution to the problem of many fan groups with slightly differing aims and objectives all wanting to have a go at what they at least knew was the root cause of the problem at Everton, the ownership. Without the structure of the Blue Union certain things would never have happened. The protest marches must have chilled the management to the bone, well we knew they did. Watching Goodison Road filled with Evertonians fed up with the years of lies and deception was fantastic. The keyboard warriors who criticised those guys who protested mean nothing to me, call me old fashioned but some loner sitting their in their underpants telling match going Evertonians that they're wrong from the middle of some god forsaken place, I tend not to worry about. I worry about the lads outside the pubs and on the sidewalks clapping the marchers; put your pint down and do something for your club. We let the Spirit of Shankly lads see the videos from the march, they were amazed how we got so many, all they got was three hundred. The public meetings we held were very well attended to. It goes to show there's a real passion for information out there, beyond the Neanderthal offerings of sites that pander to the club hierarchy, the ones they can rely on.”

Everton Supporters Umbrella Group The Blue Union

Patently, if there was ever an opportunity to address the fracture between supporters and the hierarchy of Everton, the collapse of the Kirkby debacle was it. However, the lack of initiative or will from Everton to address the elephant in the room and with supporters groups now calling for the Chairman and board to appoint an independent group of professionals to oversee the sale of the club, a 14 year objective yet to be fulfilled by Kenwright, it seems the opportunity may have been forever  lost.​

On Monday, 11 March, ex-footballer turned broadcaster, Stan Collymore, dedicated more than two hours on the national radio station, TalkSport, to Everton Football Club. He had been approached by a club spokesperson who, for some unthinkable reason wanted to remain anonymous, yet had agreed to answer a list of 12 questions put together by Collymore. Amongst the answers garnered from the former employee of Manchester City, was the ‘revelation’ that Bill Kenwright and his fellow major shareholders were willing to sell their stake in Everton and valued the club in the region of £125 million. The biannual link to ‘Middle Eastern interest’ also reared its familiar head.
 
Question number four on Stan Collymore’s list, ‘Why has there been no sale of Everton Football Club? Also received a familiar comeback; ‘The stadium issue is a millstone around the clubs neck.’

I thought it would be remiss not to ask Colin Fitzpatrick for his view on the same question. Colin’s answer turned out to be somewhat more detailed than that of the anonymous Everton spokesperson.​

Why has there been no sale of Everton Football Club?

“If anything has been proven, in recent years, it is that the directors are only interested in obtaining the maximum amount of money when they depart. Kenwright admitted to chasing a guy to sign the contract to sell the club who lived in a bedsit in Singapore. Obviously, it would never have happened but the fact he was chasing him should concern every Evertonian.

Then there was the Kirkby con, in which the £52 million cross-subsidy, that was meant to pay 40% of the total cost of the stadium didn't actually exist, but was a value that would have ended up on the balance sheet and realised once the club was sold. A need for a new stadium did not drive the move to Kirkby, it was the chance to correct the balance sheet that was being slowly eroded. The recent revelation that they're looking for a £125 million return, after paying just over £20 million, only confirms what they're in it for.

Don't get me wrong, if they'd invested in the infrastructure, made sure the commercial dealings were the best we could get, I'd be the first to wish them best of luck. The problem is they haven't done any of that, they've used the assets to keep the club going. Under Kenwright’s leadership, we’ve gone from a £20 million positive balance sheet in 2000, to a £44 million negative balance sheet today. We find the business simply doesn't generate any money and that's what a business is for.

A key metric used to calculate this, EBITDA, has been falling and falling at the club in recent years, from almost £9 million in 2008 it's now dropped to minus £6 million. The reason for this is the commercial performance of the club, it simply isn't good enough and what do the board of directors do to alter this situation? What do the individual members of Everton's board actually do anyway?  I often see, as opposed to hear, people say, "Be careful what you wish for" when they talk about Kenwright, not a ringing endorsement obviously, but that's about all people can say before following it up with a list of clubs that have got into trouble. I always wonder why the previous owners of those clubs sold out to these people, and nine times out of ten it's all about money, as much money as possible and there's the problem, our board, a board with a justified reputation for failure and a readily stated desire to obtain £100 million, tells me they'd sell to anyone. Thankfully people who have earned their money have looked at our club, looked at the books and looked at the asking price and said you're having a giraffe. 

The best salesman for Everton?

Of course in 2013/14 Everton should increase their turnover by £25 million due to the new TV deal but TV money has increased before, without any finding its way to the club.”

Sadly, and somewhat bizarrely, given the fractious past of supporter - club relationships, judging by the outcome of the recent meeting between Everton CEO Robert Elstone and the Shareholders Association Executive, relations between the Everton hierarchy and the supporters who are genuinely concerned about their clubs future, are seemingly at an all time low. Remarkably, Everton Football Club’s officers, chairman and board of directors find themselves in the peculiar position of refusing to acknowledge the very existence of a section of the clubs own match going fanbase.

At some point, in the very near future, this damaging stand off between Chairman, board and officers of Everton versus supporters and supporters groups, simply has to be resolved.

For the good of Everton Football Club, something has got to give.


Colin Fitzpatrick was talking to OTS, March 2013.

First published by these Football times