Everton: Five famous matches part 1

Having outlined my ten, (as it turned out eventually eleven), best Everton players since the war, I thought this week I would pick the five games I think were the most famous and important in the club’s recent history.

The first game I’m gong to look at is the 1966 FA Cup final when Everton travelled to Wembley to take on Sheffield Wednesday.

The Toffees were enjoying a good decade under their astute manager Harry Catterick. He had brought in some fine players and developed a good side at Goodison Park. Everton were regularly competing for honours and the team had won the league championship in the 1962-63 season.

However this 65-66 season hadn’t been quite as successful in terms of the First Division, and frustratingly it was rivals Liverpool who had claimed the title.

So, it was even more important for Everton to win the Cup and take something from the campaign. Strangely, if they did, it would replicate the 1905-06 season, exactly sixty years earlier, when the two Merseyside clubs also won the League and FA Cup in the same season, with Liverpool champions and Everton FA Cup winners.

The Toffees were big favourites to beat an unfancied Wednesday team, who didn’t have the stars the Blues possessed. Before the game though, Blues boss Catterick sprung a surprise selecting a player who had barely played, Mike Trebilcock, in place of England centre-forward Fred Pickering.

This was certainly unexpected, but otherwise the Blues team was a strong one. It included players such as Gordon West in goal, Brian Labone and England left-back Ray Wilson in defence, and the fans favourite, Scottish centre-forward Alex ‘the Golden Vision’ Young up front.

But it was Wednesday who began much the brighter and they took an early, well-deserved lead when their Scottish player, Jim McCalliog’s shot was deflected past West. This was actually the first goal Everton had conceded during the Cup competition so far.

The Blues couldn’t get going, their opponents were playing the better football and despite the Toffees having a decent shout for a penalty, comfortably held onto their lead until halftime.

Everton improved after the break but they couldn’t equalise and it was Wednesday who scored again as David Ford netted following a rebound off goalkeeper West.

With just half an hour to go, Everton were two down and the game looked done and dusted. However, now Trebilcock came into his own.

The 21-year-old appeared unphased by the pressure of the occasion and after some good work from his team mates, he fired in a terrific right-foot volley. It was 1-2.

Then shortly afterwards, some slack defending from a tiring Wednesday team, let in Trebilcock again and he pounced to score another excellent goal.

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Now in a strange premonition for what was to happen later that summer in the World Cup final, several Everton fans got onto the Wembley pitch to celebrate Trebilcock’s equaliser. One of these invaders famously evaded a policeman’s attempt to catch him at first by slipping off his coat as the officer grabbed it!

The match was now a pulsating and open encounter, although it was Everton who looked much the stronger side with just a few minutes left.

And so it was that the Toffees found a winner.  Another defensive error let in Everton winger Derek Temple and he closed in on the Wednesday keeper, Ron Sprigett, before picking his spot and finishing sweetly to make it 3-2.

That was the final score, so the Blues had won the Cup for the third time and would take some silverware back to Goodison Park again. There would of course be more to enjoy that year at Wembley with success for club and country, as England won the World Cup with Everton’s Wilson the left-back in Alf Ramsey’s fabled team.