They had a famous FA Cup run in the early 1990s, eventually being knocked out by Crewe 3-1 in the 3rd round. Roly Howard was manager for a record 33 years (1972-2005), although he will always be remembered by some fans as Kenny Dalglish's window cleaner. TV presenter Ray Stubbs once asked: "How's business, Roly?" to which Roly replied "Oh you know - ups and downs."
Former players include Michael Ball (Everton and Rangers) and Stephen Wright (Liverpool and Sunderland). The club motto is 'To Enjoy, Not Destroy.'
THE wraps were whipped off plans for Everton's new £150m stadium to reveal looks of astonishment from some fans.
Acutely aware that many Blues are reluctant to quit Goodison Park, here was a great opportunity for the club to sell the idea of a 21st century stadium (or the equally uninspiring 'Kirkby Project' as its being called) to fans. Well, Everton certainly can't be accused of 'doing spin' with this one.
Instead of blue skies and sunshine what do we get from the PR guys?
An off-the-peg stadium design plonked into the middle of a cold, wet January night. Looks like an Aldi, someone said, or a multiplex cinema.
OK some EFC badges have been stuck on it and 'The People's Club' slogan makes an appearance to either inspire unity or (more likely) wind up Reds. But overall it makes dim, depressing viewing. All it needs are a few bolts of lightning to complete the gloom.
What would Ann Widdecombe say? "There's something of the night about it."
Chief executive Keith Wyness was proud to talk about there being four separate stands (no bowl-like stadium), although he quickly added that the corners can be filled in afterwards if the club wants to match the 60,000 capacity of their rivals. Good thinking, eh?
Apparently it's all based on FC Koln's stadium which hosted matches in last year's World Cup. Is it coincidence that their computer generated designs also had an 'after dark' feel?
“We have developed a very interesting design. It is a real nod to tradition with the four stands rather than the bowl design which most of the clubs have gone for recently. We have paid a lot of attention to the design in Cologne in order to create the atmosphere. Tradition and atmosphere is what we have tried to retain.”Keith Wyness
Each of the six computer images released by the club so far are external night-time views. Fans would rather see what things look like inside on a glorious spring day.
And, what are the World War II searchlights all about? Looking for inspiration, perhaps?
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Jack wrote...
It's boss. We can get the train to Kirkby, can't we? It's better than Anfield and the lights are amazing.
Posted by: Jack | July 20, 2007 6:57 PM