James Wallace

James Wallace was thrust into the Goodison spotlight along with a few other kids from the Everton Academy when the start of the new 2008-09 season "came too soon" for the Everton hierarchy, who seemed oblivious to the new seven sub rule and had forgotten to bring in any new players.

Obviously one of the few Everton youngsters to actually impress Moyes, he had escaped the axe that cut short the aspirations of a number of his teammates in the annual cull at end of that season.  Wallace had advanced almost unheralded from the Academy, with very few appearances in the Everton Academy 2007-08 Under-18s side.

He made the extended subs bench for both opening games — that was until Everton finally brought in some more experienced warm bodies from foreign parts to make up the numbers. He made the subs bench on a further ten occasions through he season  but was allowed to develop further for another season in the Reserves before finally earning his debut as a sub in a Europa League qualifier in the Czech Republic, against Sigma Olomouc.

Wallace was subsequently named among the subs in a further eight senior matches through December 2009 but failed to make it onto the field again for the Everton first team, despite staying on books for another 2½ seasons.

Following a string of loans to Bury, Stockport County, Shrewsbury Town, Stevenage and Tranmere Rovers, he made a permanent move to Tranmere in June 2012. He made the upward move to Sheffield United in 2014 before Tranmere dropped out of the Football League at the end of the next season.