Liam Knight: From Paddock to Park End

Since 1892, Evertonians have flocked to Goodison Park to watch the Toffees. I feel very privileged to have been amongst them.

Funnily enough, I don’t actually remember my first time at Goodison. I was about 3 or 4 when my Dad took to watch Everton v Arsenal. He tells me he spent the two bus rides to the game explaining the “Goodies” wore blue and the “Baddies” wore red. It was a simple explanation that still resonates with me. Naturally, though, Arsenal wore their away kit that day and he had to spend the entire first half explaining to me why they were wearing yellow!

Yellow was also coincidentally the colour of my jacket on Dad’s last visit to Goodison. I was lucky enough to do a tour of the ground with him and meet Pat Nevin in October 2024, but to get to a game with him again was amazing. We may have lost 2-0 to Bournemouth in February 2025, but being with Dad for a final game at Goodison some 15 years after his last is one of my favourite memories. It was a truly magical day. He gave me the gift of Goodison, and I am so grateful for that. Thank you, Dad.

I must also give a massive shout out to my uncle Mike. I sat alongside him for several years, and he took me the match for a few years when Dad didn’t have a season ticket. It is something I have always appreciated.

I began following the Toffees in earnest in 1994, quickly becoming obsessed. I would attend the odd match here and there, but it was clear I was hooked. I remember the elation when we lifted the FA Cup in 1995 (although I watched it at home). As an 8 year old I assumed this would be a common occurrence, and the nerve wracking game against Wimbledon I attended the year before was an outlier. Sadly I was wrong on that.

96/97 was the first season I began attending regularly. There was a spare season ticket in my uncle’s friend group, which Mum and Dad ended up buying for me. I had been to a couple of matches in the seat not realising that was the case, and will never forget opening it at the very bottom of my bag of Christmas presents that year. I was physically shaking, and so excited about it. Covid aside, I have missed 4 league games at Goodison since.

I sat in the Paddock from 1996 to 2013, with so many special memories. Duncan’s daisy cutter from the edge of the box in my first derby, the Cadamarteri derby, being on the pitch v Coventry, Super Kev saving us, the 4-4 v Leeds, Moyes’ first game, Rooney’s wonder goal, Super Lee Carsley and so many other memories. But the one that stands out the most from my time in the paddock is Man Utd in 2005. Duncan’s header, the bear-pit atmosphere. What a night- the hairs on my arms still stand at thought of it.

I’ve managed to sit everywhere in Goodison for cup or one off games, save for the Upper Gwladys. I love the non uniformity of the ground, and the contrast. The beams, the wooden seats. Everyone with their hands over their eyes in the Street End when there is a low sun. The tight streets around the ground, the hustle and bustle of matchday. I have savoured every moment of it this season, even when results or performances have been below par.

Goodison full of life and character, and at its best it is my favourite place on earth. That said, I have definitely cursed it far too many times to mention!

In 2013, I moved to the Park End where I have sat since. It has been brilliant. I have found light even in the dark moments, from the sound of seats smacking up at a mass exodus following a late defeat or being right next to vociferous away fans. It was also from the Park End where I watched on as the Blues humbled Arsenal 3-0 in 2014. It was the finest performance I have ever seen from the Toffees, and the thought of it still makes me smile.

Like most Blues, I missed Goodson badly during lockdown and restrictions. I was lucky enough to get back for the Wolves game in May 2021, in the Gwladys Street for a change. It felt like Richarlison’s header took forever to go in. I celebrated wildly, and noticed a few minutes later my phone blowing up despite the usual poor signal. Turned out my abandon was picked up by Sky, and my celebration also made Match Of The Day!

When I was younger, I was so obsessed with the match itself. That has evolved somewhat, and I have realised that the most special thing about Goodison and Everton is the people. Chris Tetzlaff, Craig Blanchard, Simon Sweeney and Jonathan Alderton are some of my best friends and I have had the pleasure of attending the match with all of them regularly in the last decade. It is great to have been able to share the ups and even the downs with them.

Even though the last few years have been a real low for the Toffees (any need for how stressful Palace and Bournemouth were!?), Goodison has been at its best. Some amazing moments, and atmospheres that have genuinely won us vital games. Goodison has saved Everton, make no mistake. And that again just speaks to how special it is.

In the past year my experience has evolved even more. My brilliant friend Kevin Melling came up with an amazing idea that evolved into The “Good Times” Everton Podcast. It has been so well received, and I have been fortunate to make even more friends off the back of it. Again, another thank you is due- Kev’s superb ideas, fantastic knowledge and hard work are something I am so grateful for. Thanks mate, it is great to be able to make something together that is our own homage to the Blues and Goodison.

None of the great things I have listed above are possible without Goodison. Although I am looking forward to our new home, I will miss it terribly. It has given me so much, and that is not to be taken lightly. That said, for me it is more than a place. Even if it is knocked down or repurposed, its legacy will never be diminished. I love Goodison Park and I will end on a note that hope other Evertonians also feel;

I will leave Goodison Park, but it will never leave me.