Evertonian Bouncebackability

Everton seem to be on the road to recovery yet again, as David Moyes has managed to bring stability and relative glory to the cash-strapped club in an era of Russian billionaires and Arab oil tycoons. People of ignorance would argue that Liverpool are the comeback kings after their triumph in Istanbul against an ageing Milan side, but that is not how an informed Evertonian would see it. Having recovered from all sorts of misfortunes and injustices, ranging from the two World Wars and the Heysel Disaster, Everton remain one of the biggest clubs in British football, and that alone tells the tale of one of the proudest football teams in the world.

It is a tale that starts in 1878, when St. Domingo was established as a football team, named after the methodist church that stood on St. Domingo Road. It would go on to play it's matches at Stanley Park, in an era when the players would carry the goalposts onto the pitch themselves. The club fast became known for it's quick-flowing football and attracted players from various parishes in the region, before adopting the name of Everton F.C. just one year after it's inception.

In 1888, the Football League was established and Everton, being one of the biggest teams around at the time, were invited to be a founding member. Three years after the Football League was founded, Everton were champions, finishing two points ahead of two-time champions Preston North End.

It would take a while for Everton to become champions again, but their moment arrived in 1915 when they pipped Oldham Athletic to the top spot by one point. Despite only finishing one point ahead of the chasing pack, Everton's goal average was far higher than that of any other club, signifying a dominance from the Merseyside club. Everton's dominance was cut short by the outbreak of World War I, which suspended the Football League until 1919. This was just the start of their misfortune.

The war denied Everton of almost certain silverware, as their team was superior to that of any other team in the league, and when the competition returned five years later, many of the club's star players had left. Such an exodus of key players led Everton down a path of mediocrity for five or six years and it was a tale that would become far too familiar to Evertonians throughout the years.

The signing of William Ralph Dean in 1925 was the start of Everton's recovery to greatness, as the greatest goalscorer in British History duly proved himself to be a massive asset. Scoring an incredible sixty goals in thirty-nine games, to lead Everton to the third title in the 1927-28 season. Due to unforeseen internal struggles within the club, Everton were relegated just two years later.

Yet Dean's goals allowed Everton to gain promotion the following season, and upon their promotion, they wasted no time in claiming their fourth league title in the 1931-32 season. They won the FA Cup in the following season, playing some fantastic football in the process, and there was no doubt that they had recovered from their World War I misfortunes.

It was out of this period that the nickname 'The School of Science' was born, when sports journalist Stephen Bloomer, a former player himself, stated that 'Everton always seek to serve at the shrine of craft and science'. This was soon shortened to simply 'The School of Science' but the nickname died out shortly after the 1930's, only to be revived in the 1960's.

Soon after, Everton suffered a slight loss in form and went without a league title until 1939. Dean had left in 1937 and in his place had arrived Tommy Lawton, a player many treated as the heir to Dean's throne. He enjoyed his best season in the 1938-39 season, scoring 34 goals in 38 matches and leading Everton towards the league title and glory once again, but it was by no means a one-man team. Left-half Joe Mercer went on to be a true legendary figure of the era, not just for Everton, but for England also. Wally Boyes was a highly-gifted winger and an England international, and of course there was Ted Sagar in between the goal posts.

Again, however, through unforeseen circumstances, the Toffees were denied of the more silverware that awaited, when the outbreak of World War II meant the Football League was suspended once again. When the league resumed, the great team of '39 had broken up, Tommy Lawton had moved to pastures new and although he is often revered as an Everton legend, there is no telling the dizzy heights Lawton could have reached at Goodison. As it were, in a similar fashion to the club he represented, his iconic status was more a case of if's, but's and maybe's.

The benefactors when the Football League resumed? The team across Stanley Park of course. Like it had done after the first World War, it took Everton a while to recover from the disbanding of their great squad of 1939. It was not until the 1960's that Everton would once again build a championship-winning team and once again, it was a team of the highest quality. Everton do not do things by halves.

Harry Catterick's methodical approach to management led to a resurrection to the Merseyside team, as he led Everton to the league title in 1963 and 1970, and lifted the FA Cup in 1966. Catterick added Alan Ball, a player who would go on to achieve legendary status worldwide, to the Everton ranks after the 1966 World Cup and Everton's domination was clear as they finished 9 points clear at the top of the table at the start of the 70's. Such was Everton's consistency in the 1960's, that they became the first English team to qualify for European competitions for five consecutive years.

Brian Labone, described by Catterick as 'The Last of the Corinthians' due to his gladiatorial nature, was at the heart of the Everton defence in the 1960's. In front of him lay the Holy Trinity, Kendall, Harvey and Ball, who almost reinvented football with their dazzling ability. Trebilcock, West, Gabriel and the unforgettable Alex Young were other memorable players of the era. Young, known by many as 'The Golden Vision', was highly regarded by many Evertonians and is considered by some to be the greatest ever player to grace the royal blue jersey.

However, Catterick's decision to allow the world class Alan Ball join Arsenal would be a decision he would come to regret, as he could never recreate his team of the 1960's. Another period of mediocrity plagued the club, and Gordon Lee was soon brought in to replace Catterick. Lee led Everton to the League Cup Final and the FA Cup semi-final in his first season and success seemed on the cards again. The song 'We're on the march with Gordon's Army' came from this era, and although they did manage to reach Wembley, they could not bring the cup back to Goodison.

In the FA Cup semi-final, Everton were drawn against Liverpool, and despite scoring what seemed a perfectly legitimate goal to win the game, referee Clive Thomas disallowed the goal. It was an incident which went largely uncontested, by Liverpool supporters and players alike, and referee Thomas never has provided a reason for disallowing the goal. Liverpool went on to win the replay.

Lee did not live up to the hype of Catterick and resigned in 1981, allowing Howard Kendall to take over as Goodison boss. An Everton legend in his own right, little did anyone believe he could immortalise another squad of players as a manager. However, this was to be the start of Everton's most successful and dominant team, but also controversy and hatred would soon be bred on Merseyside.

Kendall brought the FA Cup to Goodison in 1984, and the league title in 1985 and 1987.A noticeable moment in Everton's history was the 1984 League Cup Final against Liverpool. The game was deadlocked at 0-0 but Everton should have been awarded a penalty after Alan Hansen handled Adrian Heath's effort off the line. It denied Everton of a justified win in the final, and it was Liverpool who won the replay 1-0 at Maine Road.

However, the defining competition of the era for Evertonians was the European Cup Winners' Cup of 1985. The greatest team in Everton history managed to bring the Cup to Goodison, after storming back to beat the best team in the world, Bayern Munich, in a semi-final second leg on Merseyside. It will be remembered as the greatest Goodison night for a long time, as it sent the Blues to Rotterdam, where they beat Rapid Vienna in the final.

Another noticeable moment in Everton's history was the 1984 League Cup Final against Liverpool. The game was deadlocked at 0-0 but Everton should have been awarded a penalty after Alan Hansen handled Adrian Heath's effort off the line. It denied Everton of a justified win in the final, and it was Liverpool who won the replay 1-0 at Maine Road.

Just as Everton had built another dominant team to triumph and fulfill both domestic and European ambitions, the Heysel stadium disaster was to lead to a ban on all English clubs from European competition. It was an all too familiar sight for Evertonians, who had to sit back and watch Gary Lineker, brought in to replace Andy Gray, and Howard Kendall leave Merseyside in consecutive seasons, to continue their careers in Spain.

From then until the present day, Everton have been masters of their downfall, with poor investments in managers and players. The 1990's nearly saw Everton relegated from the top flight in a very forgettable era for the Blues. Forgettable it may have been, but without controversy it was not. This is Everton after all.

Mike Walker, brought in to replace Colin Harvey manager, nearly took the Everton side into Division One in 1994. The Blues had to win to even have a chance of staying in the league, which did not seem likely as they found themselves 2-0 down within the first twenty minutes. A Graham Stuart penalty left Everton one goal behind at half time. In the second half, a terrific Barry Horne drive from thirty yards and a Graham Stuart toe-poke, both at the Gwladys Street end, were enough to guarantee top flight football the following season. It was a comeback eerily similar to the Sheffield Wednesday FA Cup final of 1966, masterminded by Harry Catterick.

The one shining light of the decade for Evertonians came the following season, as Joe Royle guided the 'Dogs of War' past Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, against all odds, to win the FA Cup. It was a memorable team as it defied the odds with it's combative play, and one cannot help but see similarities in the mentality of the 1995 team, with the teams of David Moyes.

The next injustice against Everton was again, served in a competition against Liverpool, when referee Graham Poll decided to disallow a perfectly legitimate Don Hutchinson goal at Anfield. Sander Westerveld's goal kick cannoned into Hutchinson's back, before the ball deflected back fast enough to beat the Liverpool goalkeeper. It was one of the few talking points of the Walter Smith era, and he was soon relieved of his duties at Goodison, and it was fellow Scot who was to replace him.

David Moyes, manager of Preston at the time, came to Goodison Park in 2002, and revealed it was Smith who had recommended him to Everton Chairman Bill Kenwright. Despite managing in the era of the Sky Four elite and corporations raping the sport of dignity and traditions, Moyes has somehow been able to build a team that makes the Everton faithful proud.

It is a team that has managed to beat the rich clubs on numerous occasions, and the fact that the players in the royal blue jersey recognise the plagued and unique history of Everton Football Club is a welcome sight to all Evertonians. In a period of gloves, tights and neckwarmers, the passion shown by foreigner Mikel Arteta as he was injured battling hard with Kevin Nolan in a league match is not something lost on Evertonians.

And such passion and commitment has brought some level of glory to the cash-strapped Everton. They have been competing once again in European competitions, reaching the last 16 of the UEFA Cup in last year's campaign, before being eliminated on penalties by Fiorentina. Moyes also led Everton to the Carling Cup semi-final in the same season, and has been the only manager since Keegan to break the elite four that recurringly find themselves at the top of the league.

In an era of high hopes and striving ambition, there has also been the ever-present controversy. Just like Poll and Thomas, it was to be referees that would once again plague the Merseyside club in the era of the Peoples' Club.

Firstly, there was Pierluigi Collina, who was widely regarded as the best referee in the world when he took charge of Everton's Champions League second leg against Villareal. It was a massive tie for Evertonians, who had successfully qualified for the lucrative Champions League the year before. The money Everton would have received upon qualifying for such a coveted competition would have unquestionably helped the club's financial situation.

Trailing two-one after the home leg, the Blues went to Spain and soon found themselves behind after a deflected long range effort. Three-one down, there seemed no hope, but Mikel Arteta's perfectly-placed free kick gave Evertonians hope, before Duncan Ferguson levelled the tie to take the game to extra-time...or so he thought. Collina disallowed the goal as he thought Ferguson had fouled the Villareal defenders as he challenged for the ball. He has since apologised and admitted he got it wrong, which may be true, but for the next referee, that is simply not a valid excuse.

Mark Clattenburg took control of the Merseyside derby in October 2007, and would be at the centre of controversy when he awarded Liverpool two penalties in the second half as they came back from a goal down. The second penalty was fairly-awarded, as was the red card Phil Neville received for handling the ball on the line. The first, however, was not. Tony Hibbert's contact with Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard seemed negligible, and outside the box. Clattenburg gave the spot-kick before removing the yellow card from his pocket. However, Gerrard went over to the referee and had a word. It seemed to have swayed the referee's decision as he removed the red card instead to dismiss Hibbert.

It seemed no more a red card than the one that Dirk Kuyt should have received for a two-footed tackle, a foot off the floor, on Phil Neville. The fact that Mark Clattenburg booked Kuyt shows that he saw the incident, yet did not warrant it a red card offence. Nor did he warrant Jamie Carragher's two challenges on Joleon Lescott illegal enough to award a penalty.

Alan Stubbs' finger-rubbing gesture, signalling the involvement of money, seemed to tell the story at the end of the match. Clattenburg was soon suspended from his officiating duties for his 'personal business investments', and Gerrard stated in his autobiography that Clattenburg was one of the easier referees to influence. Rafael Benitez was embarrassed by the 3-0 drubbing his team received at Goodison a season earlier, and knew a similar result would have brought more heat from the Liverpool faithful.

And here we are, on the eve of a semi-final with Manchester United, and maybe it is symbolic of our club's harsh treatment through the years that Evertonians are already using referee Mike Riley as an excuse. It is important one remains optimistic and open-minded, and do our talking on the pitch first and foremost. If it comes to pass that Riley is at the centre of more controversy, and is the target of more ire from Evertonians, it will be just another chapter in our history.

One has to remember how many times the club has bounced back in years gone by, and believe that it can repeat such achievements again. It is referee decisions and inches that constitute such a fine sport, and hence it is important not to bemoan decisions and deflections too much, yet one would find it extremely difficult to justifiably deny that Everton have received a raw deal throughout their history.

There comes a time when supporters must ask themselves if their club is destined to not be great. That is taking nothing away from the Blues, who have still achieved so much more than most, but who could have been the Real Madrid of England had they got the rub of the green more in their turbulent past. Some of Everton's failings do stem from engineering their own downfall, with poor investments and poor managerial appointments, of that there is no doubt, but every club fails it's supporters at times. It seems Lady Luck will be ready once again to sprinkle her dust and wave her wand to prevent Everton achieving greatness in the future.

It is difficult for many to see a road back to greatness with the stronghold that media corporations possess in the modern game. The club is similar to a small plant, surrounded by the large trees of the elite in the modern era, which will lead to a deprivation of sunlight that is necessary for us to grow. Everton Football Club may be weak and wilted, but it will blossom one day when the summers come again. Yet with an air of inevitability, a war will ravage it like a tractor, a ban will starve it like a drought, or a corrupt referee will try to trod on it like a farmer's muddy boot.