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Bluebonic
Player Valuation: £35m
You could stretch that to three teams actually, as the 66 cup winning team was sufficiently different to the 63 and the 69 sides? There is no doubt he was a superb judge of footballing talent and his ideas of how football should be played rank alongside anybody before or after him.
Jamo Martinez
Player Valuation: £70m
At a time when Top flight football was surely at it's most competitive. My first seven years saw seven different champions.
TBF I hated Shankly in that era, but when he was treated like dirt by LFC he went to Belfield , and he also kicked up when Harry did not get the manager of the year in the 1969/70 league winning season when it was given to Don Revie.
They became good friends after retirement as Shanly visited Everton on his retirement more than the other lot -
They were poles apart personality wise , but both successful in that era...
Labby often quoted the Catt had an eye for a player in his pomp , but had a failing of selling top players like Bally, and Bobby Collins far too early......That of course, I think reading autobiographies that the Catts health contributed to some of that downfall......
Back when we were running away with the league (remember those days?)in Nov 69 the BBC midweek sports program Sports Night with Coleman did an in depth piece on Us and Harry.
He talked at length and for him...maybe seduced by the glamour of TV, let his mouth run away with its self.
They may have...and hardly anybody was media savvy in those days...used the old - yes Mr Catterick the camera's not running now...you were saying?
He described our plays, our formation, even our perceived weakest link - Sandy Brown. Which did Sandys confidence no good what so ever. Add to that the OG soon after...Which was why Keith Newton was brought in between Christmas and New Year.
Harry saw the finished piece on TV, hit the roof and did a belated stable door job on the media - All Media.
So where did they go - to the man with the ready sound bite and the ever open boot room door. Which is was, amongst other reasons, the start of the media and BBC in particular love in with the rs.
Harry had faults. (we all have faults)
He had a tendency to buy players who had a good game against us.
When it worked you got Pickering
When it didn't you got Ernie Hunt, Henry Newton and Bernie Wright to name but 3
Also, He was the boss and he didn't like players having an opinion of their own. If you told him yours he remembered...you were ok while you did the biz, but fail to do so AND be near or at the 30yr age sell by date and especially if he could get a fee for you, you were gone.
Collins, Vernon Young, Gabriel.
Ball, was sold for double the money, luverly juberly for Harry...there may have been other reasons to add to this, like the post world Cup slump and the fact that Harry had health problems...nobody knows for sure.
But in the 60s, nobody - anybody...pick a 'name' got more 1st Div points in those10 years than Harry.
Steve Wigan
Player Valuation: £35m
I don't think there was much wrong with Henry Newton.
Methuselah
Player Valuation: £35m
He was more than a useful centre-forward too. I know, as I saw him play.
Signed as a midfielder, played 60% (or more) of his games at fullback, though tbh, im not his biggest fan, the glass kneed bluffer.
He was Forests pin up boy in midfield but we'd have done better signing his minder Terry Hennessey.
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BigMick
Player Valuation: £20m
Strange signing was Henry. A club record fee for a midfield player when we already had the best midfield in the country, this at a time before 1st team squads, when you just had 14 or 15 players plus youngsters. Henry at that time was highly rated and only just missed out on selection for the 1970 World Cup - he was in the 40 but not the final 22. Who was the Catt going to drop to make way for him? On his debut we lost 4-0 at Arsenal with Kendall playing at centre-back instead of John Hurst, thereafter Henry was confined to the stands (only 1 sub in those days) until he eventually re-emerged as a left-back. He made only sporadic appearances in his favoured midfield, his hopes for England recognition diminishing by the day.
Henry spoke of receiving a cold reception from the Everton players when he joined - they were probably as bewildered as everyone else at the signing. He later became good friends with HK. He left us for Derby where he won a Championship medal under Dave MacKay playing, as far as I can remember, at left-back.
BigMick
Player Valuation: £20m
To be fair to the Catt, Henry Newton was highly rated at the time we signed him, and close to an England spot, which seems incredible given HK never played and Colin Harvey only got 1 cap.
As for Big Bernie, I doubt he was a Catterick signing as he was ill at the time and wasn't at the game. Tommy Casey was in charge when we played Walsall so God only knows who gave the thumbs up to sign him - no-one was eager to claim responsibility!
Otherwise, agree with everything in your post!
jayonenote
Player Valuation: £8m
I'm sure he signed Rod Belfitt too
It's a tragedy that Catterick didn't resign in the summer of 1970, or at the latest the following year. His last couple of seasons somewhat spoiled his record. Signing dross like Belfitt, Bernie Wright and Mick Bernard and getting rid of Alan Ball was tragic.
I'm a bit surprised that nobody's started a "Would you take Harry Catterick back?" thread, since some people seem to believe that Royle, Martinez, Moyes etc should be considered for the non-vacant job. At least no-one's suggested re-hiring Walker.
Funny thing about the cat, he was always thought of as a big money spending ‘chequebook’ style manager,and, if you are talking of his 63 champions then, perhaps, that was the case. The side which won the title in 70 (which, having watched both teams) I rated as the better one had 6 regular starters who came through Everton youth system. Tommy Wright, Brian Labone, John Hurst, Colin Harvey, Jimmy Husband and Joe Royle. When Labone was injured another product of the youth system, Roger Kenyon stepped in and when Jimmy husband was injured Alan Whittle, Tom Davies’ uncle, stepped up to play such an important role at the end of the season.
For a chequebook manager, he didn’t half give the kids a chance.
For a chequebook manager, he didn’t half give the kids a chance.
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