ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

Hobnailed Boots

I was just applauding the success of twinkle toes Jimmy Mac's heroic double to save brummies a point, when the full horror of that broken leg tackle unfolded....... We've all played footy at one time or another and you know in that split second whether you are in with a shout of getting the ball or if you are going to cripple the guy....

The odd accident aside, it's as deliberate as a smack in the gob. I don't know if it's just my perception or not, but in the old days of flapping shorts and steel toe-capped hobnailed boots, there hardly ever seemed to be any injuries. Most players would play every game, all season.

Nowadays with higher skill and fitness levels, why don't the players themselves sort it out ? look at rugby self discipline... I thought the days of the dirty Leeds of Bremner, the giraffe and Norman Hunter, were over...

What will the fine be??? Or will he go down for GBH? if I did it, I'd be eating porridge for a long long time. COYB
Dave Walsh, Tenerife Posted 24/02/2008 at 10:51:27

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Michael Kenrick

It amazes me that the full horror of this tackle is being censored by the normally all-too-inquisitive news media. What the hell is that all about? You can't pretend it didn't happen, and surely seeing it in all its gory detail would be far more of a deterent than anything else. I just don't geddit.

Rob Jones
1 Posted 23/02/2008 at 13:44:05

What a horrific foul that was by Taylor on Eduardo.

Anyway this made me think, what's the worst tackle ever committed on or by an Everton player in your lifetimes?

Mike Allison
2 Posted 24/02/2008 at 21:16:00

It was by Dirk Kuyt on Phil Neville in this season’s derby. I’ve never seen a worse... well, I can’t really call it a tackle. Its just a good job it missed so ridiculously.

Alan McGuffog
3 Posted 24/02/2008 at 21:13:54

Willie Bell on Derek Temple in the Battle of Goodison 1964. This was about the time that Leeds became despised.
I?ve only been going since 1961 so I?ve not yet seen us do a really bad foul yet.

Stefan Tosev
4 Posted 24/02/2008 at 21:24:54

Henry on Weir and Gerrard on Naysmith

Andy Ellams
5 Posted 24/02/2008 at 21:35:13

Jimmy Case on Geoff Nulty, Brian Marwood on Adrian Heath

Mark Perry
6 Posted 24/02/2008 at 23:01:41

Steve Macman on John Ebrell, missed and broke his own leg! Forget the year

Mike Robinson
7 Posted 24/02/2008 at 23:19:32

Jamie Redknapp on Cahill (v Spurs 04/05)

Gavin Ramejkis
8 Posted 24/02/2008 at 23:17:16

Gary Stevens and Jim "Bendy Bones" Beglin 50:50 was a bad outcome well for the RS at least. How about that twat Bendtner on AJ in December which left his leg pissing blood, didnt exactly hear Arsehole Whinger say a word about that did you, that myopic bastard has already ruined any chance of AJ getting a penalty so what goes around comes around.

Tony Williams
9 Posted 24/02/2008 at 23:46:23

Took the words right out of my mouth Stefan, both were tweo footed lunges.

How Gerrard never got sent off or arrested for assault after trying to castrate Naysmith still baffles me today

Dick Fearon
10 Posted 24/02/2008 at 23:41:59

In the late 50s or early 60s I was merely a spectator yet felt physically sick when Dave McKay’s waist high two footed lunge cut young Jimmy Husband in half.
Up to that point Jimmy was an up and coming Everton star and touted for a bright England future.
That so called tackle put the lad out of the game for a year and he never regained his confidence.
All these years later I get shivers up my spine just thinking about it.

Roy Coyne
11 Posted 25/02/2008 at 00:10:39

Beat me to it Dick. Mckay got away with murder that night, and Jimmy was never the same again.

Dan Parker
12 Posted 25/02/2008 at 00:55:52

All I know is that if it was an Everton player, he’d probably be under a police investigation by now and the media and FA would have a field day.

Peter Pickles
13 Posted 25/02/2008 at 01:28:23

Peter Reid’s retaliation after Marwood had knackered Heath was pretty nasty.

Steven Nikolovski
14 Posted 25/02/2008 at 04:11:32

Carsley on Cahill!

Steve Pugh
15 Posted 25/02/2008 at 06:30:46

Come on guys, the way you are talking no everton player has ever made a bad tackle, Pat Van Den Hauwe wasn’t nicknamed Psycho because of his love for Hitchcock. Him and Gary Stevens made a few studs up lunges in their time. Not forgetting Carsleys lunge and Hunt a few weeks back, if that had connected properly the lad would probably ended up in the back of an ambulance.
Taylor isn’t a bad lad, same as Cars, he just got it wrong, and unfortunately for Eduardo it connected full on. So lets not make out that we are all saints and the rest of them are damned to hell. We are all human and we all make mistakes. End of.

Ben Jackson
16 Posted 25/02/2008 at 08:59:34

Rob Jones, you’ve turned this thread on it’s head and made it your own! Don’t worry Dave, I’ll respond!

I actually didn’t see a lot of intent in the tackle, I just think it’s a case of extremely bad luck for Eduardo and wsh him all the best with his recovery. Yeah it was a foul but I don’t think for a second he meant to injur him, Eduardo was just too quick. In regards to players in the past not getting injured as much, I think thats down to how competitive the game is now. If you were 5 or 10% off the pace back then you could get away with it (to some extent), now you can see it a mile off and when you have a fit sub to bring on, why not use them?

Peter Stone
17 Posted 25/02/2008 at 09:22:24

Michael. I wasn’t sure whether to post this or not - but there are plenty of clips showing the tackle on You Tube. Here’s one link: http://uk.youtube.com/user/WilliamJayB
It’s pretty gross to watch. I just hope Eduardo makes a full and speedy recovery.

Arthur Jones
18 Posted 25/02/2008 at 09:58:51

I was only a nipper at the time but I vaguely remember one tackle by Johnny Morrisey on a Man city player, I think his name was Glyn Pardoe, broke his leg. I think the whole ground heared the crack . This must have been about 40 years ago, one of my first ever games, can?t even remember the result!

David Torley
19 Posted 25/02/2008 at 10:16:30

I have no idea of his name, but some clodhopping wool from Altrincham who broke John Connolly?s leg in a 3rd round FA Cup tie at Goodison.

Connolly was never the same player afterwards.

Monty Carlo
20 Posted 25/02/2008 at 13:22:05

I seem to recall Jari Litmanen being on the receiving end of something similar to Eduardo a few years ago and he came back to play again. I can’t remember who pulled the trigger though...

Juan Roman
21 Posted 25/02/2008 at 13:26:58

Baros’ tackle on Stubbs 2 years ago?

Allan Hobbs
22 Posted 25/02/2008 at 14:08:27

I thought it looked like a genuine accident - Taylor is a bloody big bloke and Eduardo is very quick.

I read earlier they were thinking about amputation - nasty.

Julian van Lingen
23 Posted 25/02/2008 at 15:51:48

I have seen two photos of the incident - before and after shots if you like (I’ ve also seen video clips of the incident).

The "before shot" shows Taylor at full stretch, studs up, sole about to make contact mid-way (!) up Eduardo’s shin.

The "after shot" is taken just after impact and shows Taylor’s boot snapping Eduardo’s shin clean in half. Eduardo’s sock looks to have been ripped by a fragment of his shin bone.

At best you could call it reckless. At worst it is the act of a thug.

I don’t think that Taylor meant to necessarily break Eduardo’s leg but I certainly think there was intent to inflict some sort of damage.

Allan Hobbs
24 Posted 25/02/2008 at 16:14:35

I disagree - look at it full speed not in slow motion; it happens so fast and Eduardo just nicks the ball away before Taylor gets there. Are you telling me that most tackles are made at floor level? Of course they’re not; if you’ve ever played the game you’ll know that you often end up stratching for loose balls with your studs showing, its just the physical nature of the game. He didn’t mean it, pure accident.

Julian van Lingen
25 Posted 25/02/2008 at 17:01:55

I agree that Eduardo was too fast for Taylor and that the ball was nicked away before impact. However the tackle was over the ball and involved a downward stomping motion.

In addition:

(i) yes, most tackles are at ground level

(ii) yes, I have played the game

(iii) only Matt Taylor can say whether it was a pure accident

Tom Carter
26 Posted 25/02/2008 at 19:04:31

I agree Michael, the censorship of the leg break is a bit wiffy, is it because its arsenal a so called top four team, and they have that much power within the media circle, who knows in this day in age the p.c people are no dout behind it.

Micheal Maracsino
27 Posted 25/02/2008 at 19:13:44

I think people are been too hard on Taylor. Eduardo had his foot planted in the ground and therfore his lower leg was a rigid lever. A split second latter and he would have released his foot causing less serious damage.

It was unfortunate rather than cynical