Jack Carlile: Everton Da
My photoshoot with Jack Carlile, a long time friend and fellow Evertonian, remains to this day some of my favourite photos I've taken at Goodison Park - the light was perfect, the mood was joyous. And baby Beatrice an adorable model.
I spoke to Jack to discuss what Everton means to him, his favourite memories and how becoming a dad has meant being able to share those moments.
What does Everton mean to me?
In two words, absolutely everything.
One of my main beliefs with Everton that I would still defend to the hilt is that you cannot half-arse Everton. Once you’re in, that’s it. Cliché “those who understand, don’t matter” might be, it’s something that I still fully believe. There’s no guarantee of anything with following any football club, it’s not why so many of us do it. It’s the intangible aspects that can’t be measured by an algorithm. It’s shielding your eyes from the low sun at a lunchtime kick off, it’s Stallone grimacing on his coffee, it’s the smell of chips and horse sh*t as you approach Goodison Road, it’s the two fellas sharing a rollie in the park end toilets discussing who’s shout it is for the halftime ale, in a word, it’s everything.
Players and managers come and now as will Goodison. But throughout all this change a constant remains, the constant is Everton and I am eternally grateful to be a tiny part of it.
Up the Toffees!
Jack shares some Everton memories:
To save you all from reading another self-indulgent paragraph and potentially rehashing famous moments that many of you will remember, I am going to summarise five moments from games that I remember vividly that I think give the best summary of Everton to date.
Everton 3 Manchester United 4, 07/02/04.
Despite being three nil down at half time to the Salford Globetrotters. Everton rallied and brought it back to three all, only to then concede in the last minute to a Van Nistelrooy goal.
Everton 2 Spurs 1, 05/01/11.
My first time sitting in the park end with my Dad whilst I was home from studying in Sheffield. One of Saha’s games when he was untouchable and a Coleman header. Magic!
Everton 2 Crystal Palace 3, 16/04/14.
Yannick Bolasie. Sigh.
Everton 4 Manchester City 0, 15/01/15.
Mirallas as a Ten. The Davies chop. Funes Mori. That pudding in goal for them. What a day.
Everton 1 Watford 0, 12/05/17.
A damp squib of a final game to one our league seasons under Koeman. Memorable for it being Barkley’s last goal for us. Fella I was sitting next to in the top balcony hated him that much he didn’t celebrate any goal he scored throughout his time here. This night was no exception.
The impact of Goodison Park:
27th February 1999. My first time at Goodison. Everton 1 Wimbledon 1. Everton’s team that day took “Frankenstein squad” to a whole new level.
In the XI that day was a 37 year old Dave Watson , a 19 year old Michael Ball, future world cup winner Marco Matterazzi, Olivier Dacourt and John Oster as the midfield pairing and my first Everton hero Francis “Franny Jeffers”.
Photo from These Football Times
I was only six years old at the time, until then my main interests were Fort Boyard, SMTV and WWF. However, after this I was hooked, I can still vividly remember being sat with a can of coke and a pack of bacon fries in one of the county road pubs before the game, soaking up every moment including the second hand BnH smoke that hung heavy in the air.
The game itself wasn’t particularly memorable as it was a pretty uneventful 1 all draw, low scoring affairs not being entirely uncommon under our manager Walter Smith at the time. It didn’t matter though I was hooked and it has been one of the main constants ever since for the following 26 years.
I recently became a Dad for the first time last year, and realising that taking my little girl to see a game might be a little bit much for a girl that isn’t yet one (no much how she might end up like her Dad) I reached out to Laura, having made good friends with her through the Toffees and also a huge fan of her work.
We discussed having a mini photo shoot outside of Goodison before one of the games this season with myself, Georgia my wife (a Blue by proxy) and Beatrice.
The photos are now pride of place in our house and were even used as a Christmas present to the man responsible for my Everton obsession (my Dad). Naturally Everton went down to a late defeat that day but to me the photos mean the absolute world and when Beatrice is sitting/standing in Bramley Moore in the years to come (if she wants to) I’m made up that I was able to show her Goodison, even if she was a little bit green to experience a full Park End Boo/Flounce in all its glory.
