Everton v Coventry City: Premier League – live
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To the excited chatter of playgrounds up and down the country members of a certain jaded generation, this fixture is a re-run of the 1987 General Motors FA Charity Shield. Coventry, who had won the FA Cup just nine weeks previously, took 35,000 fans to Wembley, a record for the season curtain-raiser, while Everton supporters, making their eighth appearance at the grand old pile in four years, were comparatively thin on the ground. But the latter were the ones who got to celebrate, Wayne Clarke scoring the only goal just before the break, while Kevin Ratcliffe popped Cov’s new £750,000 record signing David Speedie in his pocket. All the post-match talk was of Everton retaining their First Division title: they ended the season in fourth; City, hoping to build on their breakthrough cup win, finished tenth. Both clubs were slightly disappointed with those returns back then; they’d deal on them for this season, right here, right now.
David Moyes = Harry Catterick. Well, not quite: Top Catt did win two league titles (1963 and 1970) and Everton’s first FA Cup in 33 years (1966) after all. But in another way: yes! Our man Tom Garry reports.
With David Moyes tonight set to equal Harry Catterick’s all-time record of 592 matches in charge of Everton across his two spells at the club, his colleague, the Everton women’s team head coach Scott Phelan, has spoken of his fond memories of his role as a ball boy on the day of Moyes’ first match at the helm at Goodison Park in 2002.
Phelan, now aged 38, is a former Everton academy player and he said: “The opportunity to be a ball boy was a big thing. I think I was 14, 15 years of age. Just seeing the players close up, with the best seat in the house, was something I’ll always remember. The sense of occasion, the atmosphere and [Moyes] starting on a positive footing is what I remember.
“What he is about to achieve is really important in his own career but, for this club as well, he’s brought stability in his first and second phase. I have massive respect for him and what he has achieved here.
“He’s had an amazing career. Hopefully he can celebrate with a win.”
