Column & Opinion Articles

Contributions from our editorial team and featured columnists.

The Life of Hunter Hart

Rob Sawyer (EFC Heritage Society)

Hunter Hart served Everton with distinction on the field in the 1920s and behind a desk in the 1930s but, unfortunately, his association with the club he loved was to end prematurely, as was his life.

30/06/2016

Everton must keep Lukaku this summer

Gary McCarty

Ronald Koeman's primary objective this summer should be to keep hold of the forward, and restructure the squad around him.

30/06/2016

Ozan Tufan: A good fit for Ronald Koeman's Everton?

Gary McCarty

Ozan Tufan isn't exactly a household name in European football just yet... but he will be. The Turkey international has attracted plenty of attention in the transfer window from a number of Premier League clubs but the Toffees may be about to pip the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur to the Fenerbahce man.

29/06/2016

Better off out of it

Lyndon Lloyd

While it would have been nice to see either or both of the Blues' young Englishmen excel on the world stage, they were better off having played no part in Hodgson's mess.

28/06/2016

New Day Rising

Lyndon Lloyd

â€œNothing will be the sameâ€ is the promise of Everton's latest marketing slogan. By happy accident rather than clairvoyant design, it has turned out to be remarkably prescient as the promise of the Farhad Moshiri era begins to flower with the arrival of Ronald Koeman.

15/06/2016

Now or never for Darron Gibson

Lyndon Lloyd

Now 28 but with just 38 league starts in four-and-a-half years, Darron Gibson's new two-year deal represents his last chance to make his name at Everton.

09/06/2016

Koeman: Is the nomadic Dutchman ready to make his mark?

Lyndon Lloyd

Despite being tipped as a future Barcelona or Arsenal boss, Ronald Koeman has been described as one of the most underrated managers in Europe. As he stands on the brink of replacing Roberto Martinez at Everton, is he finally ready to fulfil that rich promise at the top level?

04/06/2016

A Time for Patience

Lyndon Lloyd

There's a fair bit of restlessness creeping into the collective Evertonian psyche as June approaches with no hint if a managerial appointment to replace Roberto Martinez but the magnitude and importance of the decision mean that the club is right to take their time.

28/05/2016

De Boer: The Dutch master to lead Everton's renaissance?

Lyndon Lloyd

The departing Ajax boss is among the leading candidates to replace Martinez this summer. Four Dutch titles earned him a stellar reputation but has he sullied it over the past two years?

23/05/2016

Lukaku's long goodbye lacks class

Lyndon Lloyd

The Belgian's publicly declaration that he has "made his decision" over his future reek of arrogance and are disrespectful to Everton and the fans.

23/05/2016

The Crouching Wizard â€” Flavour of the month or genuine article?

Lyndon Lloyd

Unai Emery is the latest big name to be linked with the Everton job. He has a history of stabilising and improving struggling teams and has now won the Europa League three times in succession. Would he be a gamble or just the ticket to turn the Blues around?

22/05/2016

The Sword of Damocles

Lyndon Lloyd

The chop when it finally came was painfully overdue but there can't be an Evertonian left who didn't feel that by the end, it was the only merciful thing to do to relieve Roberto Martinez of his managerial duties before the final home game with Norwich City.

14/05/2016

14 May 1966 â€” Is it really half a century ago?

Ray Roche

A story where one of the most famous games in Everton's history, the FA Cup Final of 1966 when Everton beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-2, was just a part.

14/05/2016

Everton must make a statement with their next managerial appointment

Matt Jones

A conservative approach in finding Roberto Martinez's successor is the wrong one. Everton need someone to motivate the squad and enliven a fanbase that's been dulled by the multitude of galling moments in recent years.

12/05/2016

Car-Shares and Cemeteries: A Tribute to Jeremiah Kelly, EFC 1927-28

Tony I'Anson

An account from the unveiling of a gravestone commissioned by the Everton Heritage society to honour Jeremiah (â€œJerryâ€) Kelly, a member of Everton's championship winning team of 1927-28.

10/05/2016

The Vanity of Idealism

Lyndon Lloyd

Roberto Martinez's utopian vision is wholly at odds with Everton's dystopian present

05/05/2016

Roberto Martinez' mantras have become muddled and it' time for a change at Everton

Matt Jones

The Catalan breezed into Everton on a wave of positivity and with an identifiable plan to take the club back to the top. Three years on, he has sadly lost his way and much of the belief in this vision from the players and fans is long gone.

27/04/2016

Who could replace Roberto Martinez at Everton?

Lyndon Lloyd

With a second successive season of failure about to be consigned to the history books, Roberto Martinez's future at Everton is squarely under the microscope. A look at some potential candidates whom the club could look at if he is dismissed in the coming weeks.

25/04/2016

Amo on THAT Spurs game

Jens BjÃ¶rknÃ¤s

The strange story of how Daniel Amokachi decided to come on as sub for Paul Rideout in the 1995 FA Cup Semi-Final, where he went on to score two fantastic break-away goals that secured Everton's place in the Final, and went on to beat Manchester United.

21/04/2016

FA Cup success shouldn”t save Roberto Martinez at Everton

Matt Jones

The ingredients for success in cup football are a few shades removed from what's required to thrive in the domestic, week-to-week grind of the Premier League and it's on the latter score that the manager has struggled for two seasons.

12/04/2016

The False Parallels with 1984

Lyndon Lloyd

Why romantic comparisons between the present and Howard Kendall's transformative third full season in charge are misleading and an FA Cup triumph shouldn't buy Roberto Martinez more time unless it's accompanied by huge improvement over the last eight League games.

07/04/2016

Who could replace Lukaku if he goes?

Gary McCarty

Do Everton have to now become accustomed to the fact that they will probably have to say goodbye to the their stand-out star of the current season and, if so, whom should the club target as his replacement?

04/04/2016

1966 and All That — The Story of Everton's Cup Glory

Rob Sawyer with Derek Temple

In May 50 years ago Everton celebrated one of the greatest days in the club's history with a thrilling win at Wembley in the 1966 FA Cup Final.

30/03/2016

Bracing For the Inevitable?

Lyndon Lloyd

Another international break, another problematic media interview involving one of Everton's Belgian contingent. Are the paving stones being laid for Romelu Lukaku's painful exit from Goodison Park or can the striker be persuaded to stay?

30/03/2016

Martinez and Walker: A Match Made in Hell?

Jim Keoghan

The current Everton manager's record may not be anywhere near as bad as his predecessor but there are some disappointing similarities between the two men.

24/03/2016

It's time for Everton to sensibly reintegrate John Stones back into the starting XI

Matt Jones

If the 21-year-old can recapture the form that made him the most sought-after young defender in the country, he could improve Martinez's struggling team.

22/03/2016

Looking at the positives from Everton's season so far

Gary McCarty

Two cup semi-finals and the chance of finishing in the top eight with a strong end to the Premier League season suggests that Everton's 2015-16 season might not end up being so bad.

18/03/2016

Our Precious

Lyndon Lloyd

The covetous eyes of the biggest clubs from the Premier League and Europe will be on Romelu Lukaku this summer but if Everton have no imperative to sell, perhaps only the whims of the Belgian himself could see him leave Goodison Park.

15/03/2016

Chelsea Hit for Six: Fifty-Six Years Ago

Rob Sawyer

Fifty-six years to the day before our 12 March 2016 FA Cup tie with Chelsea, Everton took on the Londoners at Goodison Park in the First Division and thumped them for six.

09/03/2016

Mo' Money, Mo' Problems?

Jim Keoghan

The Peter Johnson episode in Everton's history offers a cautionary tale. Everything Farhad Moshiri represents, Johnson once did too. In relative terms, he was every bit as Â‘messiah-likeÂ’. Is cautious optimism the best the club can expect from supporters as inured to hope as we can be?

09/03/2016

Everton being held back by Martinez's rigid ethos

Lyndon Lloyd

Discussing the post-mortem of sorts that has followed the 3-2 defeat to West Ham on Saturday.

08/03/2016

Roberto Martinez's prolonged hard-luck story doing Everton no favours

Matt Jones

Roberto Martinez needs to look closer to home to amend some clear systemic problems that are producing games like Saturday's defeat.

07/03/2016

Kenwright ushers in the winds of change

Lyndon Lloyd

As with any new chapter in the clubÂ’s history, Farhad Moshiri's investment in Everton is a step into the unknown that requires faith and patience but it could mark a turning point at the club in all the right ways.

28/02/2016

Romelu Lukaku must be held to high standards

Matt Jones

The Belgian is a special talent and while heÂ’s already one of the finest goalscorers in the English game, the potential is there for him to become so much more.

22/02/2016

The Appeal to Coincidence

Lyndon Lloyd

Roberto Martinez has been relying increasingly on bad luck as the explanation for a season of stark under-achievement build but there is only so far that that crutch will take him as the inquests into his team's failings build.

18/02/2016

This pulsating Premier League season shows how far Everton still have to go

Matt Jones

Having fine young players isnÂ’t inextricably linked to success at this level; footballers need to be guided, organised, nurtured and motivated. While Tottenham and Leicester are showing the way, that process doesnÂ’t seem to be in motion at Everton.

16/02/2016

Fond Memories of Shirley

David France

Ahead a tribute evening dedicated to Derek Temple, Dr Everton recounts his most vivid recollections of Everton's hero of the 1966 FA Cup Final and vital part of the Toffees' 1960s side in general.

08/02/2016

Roberto Martinez must preserve Everton's new-found pragmatic blueprint

Matt Jones

If Roberto Martinez continues to set Everton up in the style which worked so effectively against Stoke City, then the the swell of angst against him in recent weeks will quickly dissipate.

06/02/2016

I'm sorry, Roberto, but this team IS under-achieving... massively

Lyndon Lloyd

It's galling to hear Martinez flatly deny that Everton are under-achieving this season and to insist that it's impossible to expect them to achieve at all given how "new" the team is. Because, by almost all measurement, they are under-achieving and have been for the last 18 months.

31/01/2016

Roberto Martinez and his team must give the Everton crowd something worth shouting about

Matt Jones

Ultimately, the type of football on show will be mirrored in the fanbase and at the moment the fans have a right to be unhappy as the Toffees are languishing in 12th position in the Premier League.

25/01/2016

Everton’s perennial lapses in focus threaten to undermine steady recent progress

Matt Jones

As long as mental frailties continue to blemish performances, Everton will continue to falter. Given the shelf life of this side, potentially very short if European juggernauts come calling in the the summer, itÂ’s imperative a consistent defensive focus is discovered.

18/01/2016

The times they are a-changing

Lyndon Lloyd

In conversation with Dr Everton's better half, Elizabeth France, about Bill Kenwright, his legacy and the future of the club.

15/01/2016

Martinez says no to defensive signings – is this a mistake?

Everton have been playing some exciting football all season, but the team arenÂ’t getting the results needed as consistently as they should. Poor defending is letting the team down but Roberto Martinez has said he will not dip into the transfer market this winter, but is this a big mistake?

11/01/2016

Ross Barkley’s steady maturation shouldn’t be a concern for Evertonians

Matt Jones

Ross Barkley's Everton career is back on track after a difficult second season in 2014-15 but he continues to attract criticism from some supporters who are frustrated with the Blues' lack of progress overall.

05/01/2016

Roberto Martinez’s flaws are too longstanding and too costly to ignore for much longer

Matt Jones

ThereÂ’s a sense that support for MartinezÂ’s utopian vision has seeped away lately and unless some uncharacteristically decisive action is taken in the weeks to come, the swell against the manager will only gather more momentum.

29/12/2015

Everton must rediscover their nasty streak at Goodison Park

Matt Jones

Everton are far too nice at this juncture and if this team is to progress as we all hope it does, Martinez and his players must show some backbone.

22/12/2015

Roberto Martinez Must Act to Address Fundamental Flaws if Everton are to Progress

Matt Jones

Recent results where Everton have thrown away vital points have shown that changes in approach are needed lest a chance to capitalise in a wide open Premier League passes the Blues by.

15/12/2015

Everton are bringing some overdue enjoyment back to Goodison Park

Matt Jones

EvertonÂ’s style has gone from bereft of impetus to breathless. ItÂ’s not perfect, as was evident against Palace; thereÂ’s clear progress to be made which makes it a little easier to look beyond frustrating results and at the bigger picture.

09/12/2015

Bournemouth Surrender Exposes Everton’s Lack of Leadership

Matt Jones

Everton's young attacking side had been thrilling supporters in recent weeks but a lack of leadership and communication was exposed at Bournemouth in the 3-3 draw.

29/11/2015

Aston Villa Win a Stylish Step in the Right Direction for Everton

Matt Jones

A result that represents another surefire sign that this is a young team and a young manager who have recognised their errors and are slowly starting to set them right.

23/11/2015

A Letter from Tony Kay of Sheffield Wednesday, Everton and England

Tony Kay

Tony Kay, a member of Everton's glorious 1962-63 Championship-winning side, responds to a recent article in the Liverpool Echo in which allegations made by Albert Dunlop about substance abuse in that team were republished.

18/11/2015

Lunch with Latchford

Rob Sawyer

Rob Sawyer in conversation with the Goodison folk hero who etched his name into Everton's history books with 138 goals in a seven-year spell, 30 of them in one memorable 1977-78 season.

22/10/2015

Howard Kendall - 'Talking Blue'

Becky Tallentire

An extract from Talking Blue, the 2000 book that answers all those nagging questions that have bothered Evertonians for years in the most candid and forthright collection of interviews ever given by the royal blue heroes of past and present, like Howard Kendall.

22/10/2015

Ghosting Howard

James Corbett

A eulogy to mark the passing of a true Goodison great from a man who got to know the real Howard Kendall as they worked on his 2013 autobiography.

19/10/2015

Howard Kendall

David France

Dr Everton in tribute to a legendary Everton player and the club's most successful manager, Howard Kendall.

18/10/2015

The Untold Story of Ian Buchan

Rob Sawyer (EFC Heritage Society)

22 September 2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Ian Buchan who, oversaw Everton's first team for a shade over two seasons. Often overlooked, his posthumous pen portraits have been cursory. So who was Ian Buchan?

22/09/2015

Big Bob - A Proper Hero

Elizabeth France

To coincide with the release of Bob Latchford's autobiography, the incomparable Mrs France offers some memories of the legendary striker who lit up a decade that was "an incredible adventure of disappointment and elation."

21/09/2015

Three Everton Players In Need of a Loan Move

The loan window for Football League clubs is now open and it could be the ideal time for some of EvertonÂ’s youngsters to head out for first-team experience.

12/09/2015

Everton’s Stones stance makes a refreshing change

Accepting a ten-fold profit on a player snapped up for Â£3million may make sense to some, but Everton are still able to hold their own among the elite and are focused on the present but building for the future.

18/08/2015

Cliff Britton — A Life in Football

Rob Sawyer (EFC Heritage Society)

Part II of an in-depth look into the life of a man who was Everton's first manager in the modern sense of the word.

16/08/2015

Holgate to Bolster Back Line for Toffees

Looking ahead to Southampton following the acquisition this week of Mason Holgate from Barnsley

15/08/2015

Everton On the Opening Day

Patrick Murphy

The vagaries of the opening day; very often the performance or even the result doesnÂ’t necessarily herald the dawn of a glorious new era or end the hopes of an entire season.

03/08/2015

Dave Watson – Captain Colossus

Rob Sawyer

Rob Sawyer in conversation with the last Everton captain to lift a trophy and one of the few Toffeemen for whom the title "legend" is irrefutably apt.

29/07/2015

Everton Must Stand Firm Over Precious Stones

Lyndon Lloyd

Chelsea have played their first card in what will probably a summer-long game over John Stones but if Everton harbour any ambitions of challenging for the top four again, then the club simply has to hold onto him unless Roman Abramovich offers silly money.

17/07/2015

Parallel Lives

Peter Jones (EFC Heritage Society)

The story of Thomas Norse, selected for three Everton reserve games in the spring of 1903 and another candidate for the roll of honour of the Everton players who died in the two World Wars.

10/07/2015

Get behind them?

Patrick Murphy

Fans barracking players who are not performing well is nothing new, as this piece unearthed by Patrick Murphy shows from early in Everton's 1956-57 season.

15/11/2015

Season 2014-15 column articles
Season 2013-14 column articles
Season 2012-13 column articles
Season 2011-12 column articles
Season 2010-11 column articles
Season 2009-10 column articles
Season 2008-09 fan articles
Season 2007-08 fan articles
Season 2006-07 fan articles

Fan Articles are authored by outside contributors. Their views may not represent those of the site owners.

	Team	Pld	GD	Pts
13	Manchester United	16	2	22
14	West Ham United	16	-8	19
15	Crystal Palace	16	-4	16
16	Everton	15	-7	15
17	Leicester City	16	-13	14
18	Ipswich Town	16	-12	12
19	Wolves	16	-16	9