A Mersey Derby…
Anfield
Play up,
November ‘96…
Bravo,
Liverpool !
Everton !
…& it’s all about to Kick-Off…
Second Half…
…& our 2nd Half commences as our 1st Half finished, with Liverpool’s Keeper…
Harry Storer
“…having a particularly lively time of it…
…saving grandly from Chadwick & Taylor…”
( “Gentleman” Jack is still 7th on Everton’s all-time appearance chart, to this current day with 456…)
Jack Taylor
…which will lead us to…
Ruddy, Muddy, Mersey Mayhem !
“…a scramble in the goal-mouth & in the general melee…”
…it would appear, Liverpool’s combative Scots skipper…
John McCartney
…launches himself with utmost force, violently into Edgar Chadwick’s knackers..!
…which leads the normally mild-mannered Milward of Marlow to blow a gasket & most hostilely…
“…ram M’Cartney in such a style as to warrant the referee (Mr J Lewis, as it happened) to…
…Peeeeep !!!
…order Alf Milward from the field of play ! ”
…Peeeep !!!
…OR’F !!
Good Grief !
…& so, at 3:32 on the 21st day of November, 1896, mild-mannered Alfie Milward of Marlow becomes the first player to be the first Mersey Derby day dismissal…
…Some form of congratulation must surely go in the direction of Milward, here - It really took some doing to get dismissed in those times - Some charge, this one must’ve been !! One shudders to imagine the ferocity of the Mighty Milward’s barrel-chested charge unleashed on mad , bad ‘Mattie’ McCartney, in & of that day…
You what ? You heard !
Many chances come, many chances go, until, in the final knockings of the game, the ‘leather’ falls at the feet of the merciless McCartney, who, with only the goalie to beat, hits it “…ferociously hard…”
…but Blues’ debut custodian…
(…a recent signing from the Grenadier Guards…)
…bouncing…
Bob Menham
…is more than equal to the plucky, black-eyed McCartney’s thundersome rocket, spectacularly turning the blessed orb above the bar to preserve precious parity…
…as we find ourselves finishing here at sunny Anfield with dis-honours very much even…
…Tough tits, McCartney !
Full-Time!!
Liverpool 0
Everton 0
Gentleman of our Game…
…Everton’s diminutive defender…
…the One & Only…
Johnny Holt
was “…simply startling, the little man giving us one of his best ever displays…”
We’ll be leaving the last word on the day’s proceedings to whom we left most of the others, that of the Liverpool Mercury of November the 23rd, 1896…
“…The result was a fitting termination to a game in which merit & de-merit were about equally apportioned…”
“…What is desired by spectators is a class of game devoid of the untoward incidents which occurred & ought never to have been witnessed…”
Oh, we don’t know ! Looks like bloody good fun to us !
Score-Board…
League Placings…
21st November, 1896…
Results…
League Division One…
Aston Villa 4-0 The Wednesday
Derby County 6-0 Blackburn Rovers
Liverpool 0-0 Everton
Nottingham Forest 2-1 Sunderland
Preston North End 2-3 Bolton Wanderers
Sheffield United 2-2 Bury
Stoke 2-2 West Brom
Wolverhampton 2-0 Burnley
2. Aston Villa 13 8 3 2 26 14 19
3. Liverpool 15 7 4 4 23 13 18
4. Sheffield United 12 5 6 1 19 12 16
10. Sheffield Wednesday 12 4 3 5 19 23 11
11. Everton 11 4 2 5 14 17 10
12. Bury 12 2 6 4 14 20 10
Everton eventually pull themselves together long enough to finish in seventh place & reach the Cup Final, losing 3-2 to Aston Villa - Liverpool will finally fade to fifth in the table whilst being eliminated from the Cup at the semi-final stage by eventual winners, Villa, but they’ll not be ending the season empty handed, landing, as they do, the banging Bass Charity Cup !
Banging…
