Articles
Football pays dividends
Pilot’s Log (Don Kendall)
Football always will succeed where everything else fails. That is the major lesson of the latest Merseyside “Derby” when Everton and Liverpool played a glorious 1-1 draw at Goodison Park on Saturday, before the all-time record crowd of 78,599. The future success of the clubs lies obviously in the persistent pursuits of football’s arts. While Liverpool are not so rich in points that they can be entirely free from worry, more acute has been the position of Everton, and maybe the Reds will forgive me for dealing with Everton first, as seen in a game in which Liverpool’ s second-half dominance looked more likely to produce goals than did Everton’s in the first portion.
Everton’s timely return to the men who are first and foremost footballers gives a new hope to everyone, and makes the task of the new team manager not quite as exciting as we feared. While Everton served up football which tasted like crusted port, it was Liverpool who had the vital incisiveness and striking power so that Ted Sagar was far busier than Cyril Sidlow, one save off Fagan being as great as anything he ever has done. All the 1939 championship players did grandly, and none more so than the inimical Wally Boyes, who always seemed to have a new trick up his sleeve and who kept Liverpool’s defence bewildered by his speed and ball masterly. Only Bill Shepherd’s two-handed save, with Sidlow beaten (he did the same at Villa Park) deprived Boyes of the goal he deserved to crown his return, but Boyes was just as pleased when Dodds duly converted the penalty.
Closing Thrills
The thrills of the game were reserved for the closing stages, when we had almost become resigned to a goalless encounter. Then Tommy Jones went to the touchline to have a groin “taped” and while he was away the opportunists Fagan scored off the foot of the post after Shannon and Payne had made the opening. The fact that the Reds so quickly eased in on the absence of Jones is high tribute to his skill and value. Curiously enough another Welshman, Sidlow had something to do with the equaliser. Sidlow allowed the ball to cross the goal-line for what he honestly believed was a goal kick. Unfortunately for Cyril it was a corner, and this led to the Boyes shot, that Shepherd save and the Dodds winner to save the point. Sidlow made a great effort to save a penalty and actually got his hands to Jock’s shot, but the power was too much for him. The match was generally controlled by the half-backs, with the Joneses (Bill and Tommy) masters of the middle’ Watson and Taylor, the delicate users of the ball; and Paisley and Bentham, the intrepid relentless interveners I though Everton had a slight pull a back, for Saunders and Hedley drew the teeth of the deadly Liddell and Payne although Liddell always was a potential danger, and Payne again showed us his fertility of ideas and neatness of control back of the post, but Fagan was generally the chief danger to Everton security, and I was delighted that he became more of the striker leaving Balmer and Shannon to create. The size of Dodds was of material help to the Toffees in drawing attention from smaller men, although he got few shooting chances. Fielding and Powell showed in the later stages that they can secure a working understanding and be a success.
However, it was the Boyes and Stevenson “reunion” which so delighted everyone –Red and Blue alike –in grand sporting encounter with only 15 fouls (mostly for obstruction), nine against Everton, and six against Liverpool. The tell-table of pressure is reflected in the fact that Liverpool had six corners to Everton’s four, and nine real shots to five. Now a word to Mr. F. Thurman the referee from Preston who was the perfect match controller. I hope to see more of this excellent official. A tribute too to the Everton ground staff under the Ted Storey direction and with complete police co-operation in handling the record crowd just as if it were “no bother at all” Yes, a grand example of crowd-handling with more praise for the city transport authorities in their hard task. There may have been more exciting “Derbies” but for complete satisfaction this took a lot of beating, and that Everton have broken their non-scoring spell should give them fresh heart.
Copyright - The Evening Express - Transcribed by http://www.
Football always will succeed where everything else fails. That is the major lesson of the latest Merseyside “Derby” when Everton and Liverpool played a glorious 1-1 draw at Goodison Park on Saturday, before the all-time record crowd of 78,599. The future success of the clubs lies obviously in the persistent pursuits of football’s arts. While Liverpool are not so rich in points that they can be entirely free from worry, more acute has been the position of Everton, and maybe the Reds will forgive me for dealing with Everton first, as seen in a game in which Liverpool’ s second-half dominance looked more likely to produce goals than did Everton’s in the first portion.
Everton’s timely return to the men who are first and foremost footballers gives a new hope to everyone, and makes the task of the new team manager not quite as exciting as we feared. While Everton served up football which tasted like crusted port, it was Liverpool who had the vital incisiveness and striking power so that Ted Sagar was far busier than Cyril Sidlow, one save off Fagan being as great as anything he ever has done. All the 1939 championship players did grandly, and none more so than the inimical Wally Boyes, who always seemed to have a new trick up his sleeve and who kept Liverpool’s defence bewildered by his speed and ball masterly. Only Bill Shepherd’s two-handed save, with Sidlow beaten (he did the same at Villa Park) deprived Boyes of the goal he deserved to crown his return, but Boyes was just as pleased when Dodds duly converted the penalty.
Closing Thrills
The thrills of the game were reserved for the closing stages, when we had almost become resigned to a goalless encounter. Then Tommy Jones went to the touchline to have a groin “taped” and while he was away the opportunists Fagan scored off the foot of the post after Shannon and Payne had made the opening. The fact that the Reds so quickly eased in on the absence of Jones is high tribute to his skill and value. Curiously enough another Welshman, Sidlow had something to do with the equaliser. Sidlow allowed the ball to cross the goal-line for what he honestly believed was a goal kick. Unfortunately for Cyril it was a corner, and this led to the Boyes shot, that Shepherd save and the Dodds winner to save the point. Sidlow made a great effort to save a penalty and actually got his hands to Jock’s shot, but the power was too much for him. The match was generally controlled by the half-backs, with the Joneses (Bill and Tommy) masters of the middle’ Watson and Taylor, the delicate users of the ball; and Paisley and Bentham, the intrepid relentless interveners I though Everton had a slight pull a back, for Saunders and Hedley drew the teeth of the deadly Liddell and Payne although Liddell always was a potential danger, and Payne again showed us his fertility of ideas and neatness of control back of the post, but Fagan was generally the chief danger to Everton security, and I was delighted that he became more of the striker leaving Balmer and Shannon to create. The size of Dodds was of material help to the Toffees in drawing attention from smaller men, although he got few shooting chances. Fielding and Powell showed in the later stages that they can secure a working understanding and be a success.
However, it was the Boyes and Stevenson “reunion” which so delighted everyone –Red and Blue alike –in grand sporting encounter with only 15 fouls (mostly for obstruction), nine against Everton, and six against Liverpool. The tell-table of pressure is reflected in the fact that Liverpool had six corners to Everton’s four, and nine real shots to five. Now a word to Mr. F. Thurman the referee from Preston who was the perfect match controller. I hope to see more of this excellent official. A tribute too to the Everton ground staff under the Ted Storey direction and with complete police co-operation in handling the record crowd just as if it were “no bother at all” Yes, a grand example of crowd-handling with more praise for the city transport authorities in their hard task. There may have been more exciting “Derbies” but for complete satisfaction this took a lot of beating, and that Everton have broken their non-scoring spell should give them fresh heart.
Copyright - The Evening Express - Transcribed by http://www.
