Cliff Marshall dies aged 66

RIP to Cliff Marshall, a trailblazing former Everton player.

https://www.evertonfc.com/news/2366984/cliff-marshall-passes-away

I was only about 11 when he made his debut for us so don't remember much about him. Reading the article on the site, it suggests he retired at 22 years of age..

This off Wikipedia.. I like his quote at the end.

The 1975–76 season saw Marshall make four league starts. Frustrated by a lack of playing time, he looked for a transfer at the end of the season. Speaking in 2009, Marshall revealed that a dispute with coaching staff at Goodison Park also contributed to his exit: "In the end, I got a bit disillusioned [at Everton]. I loved playing football, football was my first love. But what disillusioned me was some of the coaches at Everton said 'your first priority is to defend', and I didn't like that. I'm an attacker; defending should be my second priority. I moved on."

I remember him most for the cup tie at Plymouth in 1975 he had a great first half but I think he suffered from the negativity of Billy Bingham and was substituted early in the second.

RIP Cliff, my condolences to your family.

I was at the Birmingham game and he did look like he could make it but alas could not sustain the consistency required at the top level.

That was our year for the cup until a Taffy ref in the next round v Fulham disallowed a clean goal from Lyons when it was one-each. Yes, you guessed it. Cheating bastard – even 2 years before the game semi final.

RIP Cliff, and prayers and sympathies with Cliffs Family and friends.

I remember a couple of games he played in the first team in 1975, and he was an Evertonian, through and through.

A tough time to break into the first team, at that time for a youth, in a team that at the blew the league title, in as history has proved almost time honoured style, in context of other opportunities of success in almost the last 46 years.

God knows what Everton must do to get the tempo for previous eras of success.

RIP Cliff Marshall.

He had a stellar period playing for Liverpool schoolboys with a winger on the other flank called Jeff Swede and looked a dead cert for stardom but it didn't happen.

Seemed a very nice lad from later interviews – way too young to die (same age as me).

Condolences to his family – RIP Cliff.

I was in the Gwladys Street end. Cliff was chasing a ball down the right wing and narrowly failed to keep it in. The result of this was the Neanderthal behind me let loose with some, even for those days, shocking racial abuse which would be unrepeatable here.

Whether Cliff heard it I doubt, but it does illustrate what black players often had to put up with then. Things aren't perfect now with cowards on social media spreading their poison, but I like to think most of us in the stadiums on match day would not tolerate someone shouting that kind of abuse.

RIP Cliff, you and other black players of your era helped blaze the trail for others.

I think Cliff was the owner of a club in Parliament Street, known as Gloria’s, well known as a popular stay behind gaff, afternoon’s and early mornings, with Gloria and her three penny bits being the star attraction!!

Time & Gravity will have taken it's toll on Gloria's assets, probably down to the waist band of her kecks by now.

RIP Cliff.

I did see him play for Everton then he left and played for Southport in the lower divisions.

I grew up on the houses that backed onto the Penny Lane pitches. Grove Mount it was called or ‘Grovey'

I saw Cliff play for Liverpool Schoolboys there and score a hat-trick, one of my first footballing memories.

Very entertaining. Only published three weeks ago. RIP Cliff

I saw him in the Royal hospital three years ago, whilst visiting my brother, and Cliff was in the next bed to him.

My mind is clearly playing tricks with me, but I'm certain Cliff had had a foot amputated, for whatever reason I cannot remember, and I just wonder if his untimely death is in any way related to that?

Anyway, him and my brother got on like house on fire, spending several weeks in the same ward. RIP Cliff.

When I was a young site engineer working on civil engineering sites in and around Liverpool, if the site ever got rained off for the day, the guys on site used to joke about heading off to the Gladray Club in Upper Parliament St. I never went, but gathered it was the kind of place you could blow a weeks wages on a day/night session.

Dave (12), No, The Gladray, like a lot of clubs around that area, have long gone but the memories of the characters who drank in those gaffs linger on.

Len (13), I don't know where Gloria's assets have finished up but I hope she is still going because her heart will be in the same place. She was okay, always game for a laugh and a lot of fun to be around.

The BBC has penned a very fine piece about a very good man.

Gary Speed Remembered