Goodbye, old friend

Everton 2 - 0 Southampton

When the kick-off time for the last men’s game at Goodison Park was announced, I groaned out loud. A noon kick-off meant that the West Country Blues coach would leave at 5 am, meaning an alarm set for 3:15 am. Four different alarms were set in the Williams house to guard against accidents and, having woken Jane and the two dogs, I staggered out of the house for the 45-minute drive to Taunton.

The coach was filled by 72 diehards, some who had started even earlier than me with a 2-hour drive up from Penzance. A few familiar faces were missing, having sent an advance party to have a lengthy farewell session around the city watering holes.

With such an early start, the roads were empty and we made excellent time. There had been some discussion about us all singing In My Life on the way up but I think it was decided that it might be a bit too much for the coach driver to bear along with such an early start.

The walk across Stanley Park reminded me that there are a number of advantages of moving stadiums, a major one being that we will no longer have to see the Meccano monstrosity in red as we walk to the ground!

As I reached the players car park, the pavement was absolutely rammed with the fans waiting to greet the coach. I doubled back around the stadium, noting how run down she looks from the outside, and made my way to what I anticipated to be a packed Harlech. How wrong can you be – the pub was virtually empty with bar maids waiting to find a customer to serve.

I joined Neil, Bill, Mark, Steve and later John Snr and Danny who had yet again managed to get a ticket. A couple of beers at almost half the price of what I pay at my local in Liverton and I got to my seat just before the players came out.

I would echo here something which Danny said in his report – just in their warm up, the Southampton players were awful, unable to trap the ball. We should be able to celebrate in style today!

It was marvellous to see Seamus lead us out and very sad to see him go off so early as he had looked to be pretty sharp. I guessed that Doucoure was saying farewell by being selected and he was very emotional as he was given a marvellous ovation by one of the noisiest crowds I had ever witnessed.

Waiting for the start, I reflected on my Everton journey. It started in 1963 when I was 7 years old. My uncle – Trevor Mayor – had three season tickets which he used to entertain business contacts. He gave the se tickets to my dad to use when they were not needed by him… and what a view! Third row of the Main Stand, in touching distance of Sir John Moores. 

Trevor stopped renewing these tickets just after the title win in 1970. So my parents gave me a season ticket for The Paddock which I kept until Bebington Hockey Club became more of a pull on a Saturday. I still went to all non- Saturday games. Saturday nights out with girlfriends became difficult to navigate after yet another defeat for the Blues and being smashed to bits by self-styled hard men wielding heavy wooden sticks.

Moves to London and then Devon, together with a family and a divorce, made it difficult to see as much of the Blues as I would have liked but the appearance on the scene of the West Country Blues has made it easier to get a match ticket and transport to the game – thanks to Mike and Ian and the rest of the boys!

Sorry to have rambled… back to the game. I’d never heard the fans sing There She Goes before but what a din! Possible the loudest I have ever heard and I hope it becomes a feature. 

I thought we played well in parts, Pickford absolutely in his element, and the two young centre-backs looked very calm and solid. Garner bossed the midfield and Ndiaye and Beto looked dangerous. If we can get a winger with real pace and a physically imposing defensive midfielder (Souchek would do), together with a playmaker, then we will be in business .

Whether we can score enough goals without changing strikers I don’t know. I love Beto for his effort and clear love for the club, and the two goals he had disallowed were expertly taken by him. Calvert-Lewin for my money is a class player and will score goals but will he be fit often enough?

We need strong, hungry and young players to come into the squad and up the tempo. Alcaraz, O’Brien and Ndiaye have all shown that good players can be picked up cheaply with good scouting and our manager knows a good player when he sees one. Recruitment will be interesting.

I was disappointed that there was no “big name” to provide the musical farewell sfter the match but, as someone pointed out, this day was all about the supporters and I think on reflection the club got it spot on.

As for the supporters – how good were we?? No pitch invasion, everyone listened in silence to the violinist, and behaviour was impeccable. These are true supporters and not the poisonous individuals who post threats on line to players' wives and children.

I didn’t hear or see one bad word on Sunday and the day was a huge success for the club in how it handled the day. The police who were good humoured, the Southampton fans who stayed behind to enjoy the festivities, the former players (god bless every one of them).

But most of all, it was a success for us, the supporters, who have stuck with the club through some dreadful times but have refused to turn their backs with the “I’m done with the club now” brigade and have played such a huge part in securing our status and future.

What a great day. Goodbye, old friend… I will miss you!!

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