David Moyes: 100 Up
Steve Flanagan

A Statistical Analysis
28 November 2004

Sunday will see David Moyes take charge of his 100th Premiership game as Everton manager, but how does he compare to the other managers we’ve had?  Here, we will provide you with a plethora of statistics relating to Moyes’s reign.  Also, just to clarify one thing before we start, caretaker managers have not been included.

Firstly, let’s look at the Premiership.  Since the inception of the Premier League in 1992, Everton have used five full-time managers, including Howard Kendall in two separate stints.

One thing that is highlighted is that David Moyes is second in the list of number of matches in charge in the Premier League for the club:

1. Walter Smith – 143 games

2. David Moyes – 99 games

3. Howard Kendall – 98 games (60 and 38 games respectively in his two spells)

4. Joe Royle – 97 games

5. Mike Walker – 31 games

But, how does is record compare to other managers?  In order to compare records properly, each manager is graded on the percentage number of points won in respect of points that were available using a 2 for a win, 1 for a draw method (e.g. Mike Walker won just 6 games and drew another 9 giving him a total of 21 points [12 for the wins and 9 for the draws] whereas we could have won 62 points [the 31 games he was in charge].  Thus, dividing 21 points by the 62 available gives a rating of 33.9%)

As could be expected, Joe Royle comes out top on 53.1%.  This is mainly due to his great season after the FA Cup win when we finished in sixth position, whilst his previous season, and the following season were cut short due to his appointment and leaving respectively, so any poor results from those seasons are not reflected as greatly as Moyes’s record is due to last season.  David Moyes is currently in second place which is, as we have just said, mainly due to the poor performance last season.  On this system David Moyes would need another 30 points (based on 2 points for a win) from the remainder of this season’s matches (24) to overtake Joe Royle.

It’s obviously no surprise that the remaining managers, Howard Kendall, Walter Smith and Mike Walker, are in the positions they are due to their respective reigns.

It is also interesting to see how the managers look if we actually split down Howard Kendall’s two stints as manager.

The table, basically, is unchanged, however Howard’s final time as Everton manager, when we drew with Coventry to stay up, is in fifth place and is still miles ahead of Mike Walker.

But that’s just the Premier League.  How does David Moyes fare against all Everton managers?  Again, the answer is as good as could be expected given the resources he’s had to work with, but with one or two surprising names above him.  Consider this table:

As could be expected, it is Harry Catterick and Howard Kendall who are ahead of the chasing pack, with Colin Harvey only just hanging on to their coat tails.  David Moyes is in, what I would say, is a very respectable seventh place considering the lack of funds he has had and the squad he inherited.

An interesting question to ask, especially the older readers, is whether this statistical listing is in line with the positions you would put the managers in.  Would you say that Billy Bingham and Gordon Lee were better managers than David Moyes?  Would you put Colin Harvey high up on your list?  I’ve done it, and it’s an interesting exercise.  Here are my personal thoughts on who should be where, based on various factors like trophies won, relative success during their reign, resources they had to work with, etc:

1. Howard Kendall

2. Harry Catterick

3. Gordon Lee

4. David Moyes

5. Colin Harvey

6. Joe Royle

7. Billy Bingham

8. Johnny Carey

9. Cliff Britton

10. Walter Smith

11. Theo Kelly

12. Mike Walker

What does your list look like?

Anyway, back to the statistical analysis.  Or not, as it where.  I could of course go on with all kinds of figures such as average goals scored per game, average goals conceded per game, but would that add to, what appears to be, the general feeling on the site, in that David Moyes is doing, and has done, a fantastic job so far considering what he is working with.

Don’t forget, another certain Scottish manager celebrated his 1,000th game in charge of another certain team this week, and it took him three and half years before he won something – will the Everton board wait that long with Moyes?  I, for one, hope so.

One final bit of trivia for you.  Harry Catterick took charge of the club for exactly 500 League matches.  For Moyes to overtake him, he would have to stay in charge of the club for another 10 seasons.  So in the penultimate game of the 2014-15 season, we could see another celebration as Moyes overtakes Catterick’s historical figure.

Steve Flanagan

Reader Responses

I read with interest this article and felt I should comment. As I am much older now and living some distance away I am unable to see at first hand the number of games I would like to. My time of spectating was largely through Harry Catterick to the main spell of Howard Kendall. There is no doubt in my mind that at this point in time the best managers were Kendall and Catterick in that order. Both Bingham and Harvey inherited very good teams and then proceeded to destroy them!

They were never good managers. Gordon Lee was not bad but spent far too much time in apparent conflict with the original Duncan. Of course the circumstances of the league in these differing years could be said to be a determining factor in any managers record. The later managers maY have fared a lot better if the post Moores period had not been so disastrous.
Remember though Harry Catterick finished because of ill health. I do hope that David Moyes will stay for a long time and not be tempted away.

Some of the things that do stick out for me as a fan are:-
The swoop for Alan Ball, the first £100,000 player and reading all the papers about it.
The way in which Alex Young could lift himself to head the ball.
Ray Wilson, surely the best full back ever to be produced in this country.
The match against Inter Milan when that bloody corrupt referee disallowed Vernon's goal.
Those Duncan Mackenzie runs, I met him once in a consultants surgery in Rodney Street!
Lineker's goals.

But most of all, oh to have today for a striker the likes of Roy Vernon, even though he did like the late night piss ups with St John, Ian that is.

There is so much more I could go on for ages and hopefully not bore you. This is what being a fan is all about and why it is in your blood especially for this club. Bill Shankly was not wrong, give credit where it is due, " is there something more important than football, It only takes a couple of seconds to score a goal, If they haven't got the ball they can't score, If he is not interfering with play what is he doing on the pitch" I know this is has moved away from the stats but heck that man had some great sayings. Although a fervent Everton fan I have always had respect for the other side of the park.
Robert Jarvis

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