The Mail Bag
Not Number 1?
Comments (9)
I had been curious as to why Tim Howard was never given the number 1 jersey after signing for Everton as clearly the first choice keeper, and now with Carlo Nash wearing number 1 after being signed as a backup it really seems odd. Anyone know the story here?
Steven Sturm, Posted 12/09/2008 at 23:35:41
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Taking a guess here ... Howard is wearing #24 because the best African American baseball player of all time Willie Mays wore #24.
Hi steve, it's got something to do with Tim not wanting the No 1 shirt. Similar to the Yak being offered the No 9 shirt but he didn?t want it... weird but true.
COYB
COYB
Ron is on the right lines there. He said in a match day programme last season the reason for his preference to No 24, being because of another American sports star. In modern day football, it doesn?t really matter any more: Boulharouz was Chelsea's No 9 for a season and Gallas has Bergkamp's No 10 shirt at Arsenal.
It’s nice to see the consistency, whatever the reason. One of my minor pet peeves is the changing of players’ squad numbers from season to season, ignoring the many fans who have bought shirts with name + the original number.
Robin... I agree completely. The fact that Everton haven’t really changed an awful lot about the shirt meant I chose not to buy this season’s shirt... but I have ’Arteta 6’ on the back. I’m not one for conspiracies, but I’m sure the shirt sales have done at least 5 to 10% better due to this number swap.
As long as the lads get back to winning ways though, I couldn’t care if I had Rooney written on the back of my shirt!!!!
Good luck for tomorrow Blue Boys
As long as the lads get back to winning ways though, I couldn’t care if I had Rooney written on the back of my shirt!!!!
Good luck for tomorrow Blue Boys
Just a historical note here:-
If anyone has problems about the no. 9 jersey, then the No 1 might be a bit easier. The great goalkeepers? Ted Sagar (well before my time), Gordon West (well we had to have something to worry about), and surely the first, best and forever (so far) number one, the great Neville Southall. Very wise of Tim Howard to keep out of it if you ask me.
Who would have been the first Everton keeper to wear 1 on his back?
If anyone has problems about the no. 9 jersey, then the No 1 might be a bit easier. The great goalkeepers? Ted Sagar (well before my time), Gordon West (well we had to have something to worry about), and surely the first, best and forever (so far) number one, the great Neville Southall. Very wise of Tim Howard to keep out of it if you ask me.
Who would have been the first Everton keeper to wear 1 on his back?
Keith: Sagar presumably, if you take that Everton first wore shirt numbers in the 1933 FA Cup final (and Dean wore 9), which most records would seem to indicate is the case.
I play in an over-(none a yer business!) league and I’m #21 every year, after the great Clemente, one of life’s great athletes and humanitarians.
Ron, I hope you’re right about Tim deferring to Mays. That’d be very cool on his part.
Ron, I hope you’re right about Tim deferring to Mays. That’d be very cool on his part.
Robin - excuse me, its been a busy day.
You made me think (always a good thing), and I’m sure that the no. 1 on the back was a continental thing when I was a lad. The green jersey marked out the keeper (as the laws required that the only player allowed to handle the ball had to wear a different coloured shirt).
I don’t think that West and the others had a 1 on their backs. I’m still looking around myself, but I suspect that it came with squad numbering, not just team numbering (perhaps with Nev?)
I’m ploughing through a site called www.footballshirtculture.com, for anyone as sad (I hope in a nice way) as me - it seems to be well written at least.
And three very important points today.
Sleep well.
You made me think (always a good thing), and I’m sure that the no. 1 on the back was a continental thing when I was a lad. The green jersey marked out the keeper (as the laws required that the only player allowed to handle the ball had to wear a different coloured shirt).
I don’t think that West and the others had a 1 on their backs. I’m still looking around myself, but I suspect that it came with squad numbering, not just team numbering (perhaps with Nev?)
I’m ploughing through a site called www.footballshirtculture.com, for anyone as sad (I hope in a nice way) as me - it seems to be well written at least.
And three very important points today.
Sleep well.
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And another thing... it is only a number. As Richard Wright proved so admirably, it means absolutely nothing!