CITY 3 EVERTON 0
League Division 1
3rd April 1971
attendance 26,885
scorers Doyle(6), Hill(15), Booth(38)
Ref Ray Tinkler
City Healey, Connor, Towers, Doyle, Booth, Donachie, Jeffries, Bell, Lee, Young, Hill – used sub Johnson(64)
Everton Rankin, Wright, H Newton, Kendall, Kenyon, D’Arcy, Whittle, Ball, Royle, Hurst, Morrissey, – sub Johnson(45)
MIKE DOYLE PUTS CITY AHEAD AFTER 6 MINUTES
TAKEN FROM ‘MEMORY MATCH’ IN THE CITY PROGRAMME 29TH NOVEMBER 1986
To see the appearance of promising young players in the team is one of the joys of football. Some of our present crop of youngsters are currently being given their chance through merit, having shown their potential in last season’s Youth Cup run.
But those who watched City in the latter stages of the 1970/71 will recall other exciting teenagers pitched into the team due to a really appalling run of injuries to senior players. At the time of the Everton fixture, City were without such players as Glyn Pardoe, recovering from a double break of the right leg, Alan Oakes (cartilage), Mike Summerbee (cracked leg bone), and Tony Book (dislocated shoulder)… Joe Corrigan was also out. And coach Malcolm Allison was about to start a suspension which would keep him away from Maine Road for the rest of the season. Happily City came through the Gomik game unscathed and fielded an unchanged team against Everton, and were obviously cock-a-hoop with their midweek success. The Toffees, on the other hand, were a demoralised outfit, out of Cup competitions, and as the match progressed were clearly seen to be no match for the ambitious Sky Blues.
FREDDIE HILL MAKES IT 2-0
They were even more demoralised by half-time as they trudged in 3 goals down. Beautiful passing movements had cut huge swathes through their defence, many sparked off by the brilliance of Derek Jeffries. It was a ball from him to Donachie which led to the first goal. The young Scot centred from the bye-line and ‘keeper Andy Rankin punched away, only to see the ball fall to Mike Doyle who volleyed home from 18 yards
Shortly afterwards Franny Lee raced into the penalty area and slipped the ball to the experienced Freddie Hill, who scored from close range, the ball squeezing between the converging Howard Kendall and Tommy Wright. Tommy Booth got the third, Hill having centred to Bell who headed the ball on to the City centre-half who had joined in the attack. So after 38 minutes City were home and dry.
TOMMY BOOTH CELEBRATES PUTTING CITY INTO A THREE GOAL LEAD AFTER JUST 38 MINUTES
The second half was virtually one-way traffic. Shots rained in on the Everton goal from all angles, but Rankin shook off his first-half disappointments and was equal to the situation. He pushed a shot from Jeff Johnson, on as a sub for the injured Tony Towers, onto a post, and dived bravely at the feet of Lee and Colin Bell. The Everton defence also had brave contributions from John Hurst, Roger Kenyon and Frank D’Arcy, and kept the City attack scoreless in the second half, but a 3-0 win sent the Maine Road supporters home in a happy mood.
BY JOHN MADDOCKS
