Times have gotten a bit tough recently, and so it’s no wonder that the names of certain Everton cult heroes remain on the lips of many fans with their allegiance to the blue section of Merseyside.
The Best Everton Cult Heroes
There’s no way around this, Everton is a major footballing institution.
Perhaps not at the levels of where we used to be, but there’s no getting away from the fact that the club has been the home of a number of truly top players.
I have often wondered, what the difference between a ‘Cult Hero’ and a ‘Club Legend’ is.
After discussions with many of my friends the only answer I can think of, is to be a ‘Legend’, you have to have won silverware. So, with that being said, this list is 5 Everton Cult Heroes to have not picked up silverware during their time at the club, but we still love nonetheless.
Tim Cahill (2004-2012)
For me, only one place to start. Tim Cahill.
An absolute staple in David Moyes’ tenure at the club. Signed from Millwall in the summer of 2004, expectation was not exactly high for the Australian. The club had just sold Rooney and fans were rightly concerned, considering the season before, Everton finished in 17th.
Cahill went on to make over 270 appearances for the club and scored over 65 goals for the club.
He hit the ground running scoring a header on his debut which would go on to become a trademark finish for the 5’10 midfielder. Although after his debut goal v Manchester City, he was quickly brought back down to earth following a 2nd yellow card for lifting his t-shirt over his head. Some debut eh.
The Aussie scored some important goals and played a huge part in Everton’s qualification for the Champions League during his debut season in 2004/2005. Due to his performances in that season, he was in the top 50 nominees for the Ballon d’Or.
He was always on hand to pop up with a goal during a big game. He scored at Old Trafford, the Emirates, Stamford Bridge, White Hart Lane and Anfield. In fact, Cahill became the first player since the great Dixie Dean, to score for Everton in three consecutive Anfield derbies.
He epitomised what David Moyes’ sides were about. Hard working, got stuck in and played for the badge. Cahill left the blues in 2012, to join MLS side New York Red Bulls. To this day, Tim Cahill is widely regarded as one of Everton’s finest midfielders in the Premier League era.
It’s almost harsh to put him in an ‘Everton cult heroes’ list – he might just be a ‘hero‘! And thus far, he’s probably the most stable and dependable feature in our Cult Heroes category.
Kevin Campbell (1999-2005)
Kevin Campbell joined the blues on loan from Trabzonspor. When he arrived, Everton were fighting against relegation. Super Kev scored 9 goals in 8 games to help the blues stay up.
He single handedly kept the Toffees up during 98/99 campaign. After keeping the blues up, Kevin Campbell was signed permanently for a fee of around £3 million.
The following season, he cemented himself in Goodison folklore by scoring the only goal in front of the Kop end to give Everton a 0-1 win in the derby. This would be the last time Everton had won at Anfield up until 2021!
Often still seen around Goodison Park, Kev always takes time to pop into a pub outside of Goodison to see the fans. Which only seems to be adding to his ‘cult hero’ status with the club each time.
One of the few Everton cult heroes that’s more than welcome back at the stadium.
Leighton Baines (2007 – 2020)
If you were to ask any Everton fan from any generation who the greatest left back to play for the club is, a majority would say Leighton Baines.
Now bear in mind, Everton have been fortunate enough to have had some great left backs throughout our history, World Cup winning Ray Wilson, Pat Van Den Hauwe who played over 130 times during Everton’s greatest side in the 80’s are just a few to mention. However, there is something about Bainsey that set him apart.
Signed from Wigan in 2007 by David Moyes, it wasn’t really until 2010 when Baines started to fulfil his potential. In his first 3 seasons with the blues, Baines played 116 times and scored 3 goals. In the 2010/2011 season, Baines scored 7 goals in all competitions. He quickly established himself as one of the best left backs not just in the Premier League but in European football.
He had a wicked left foot and had a brilliant delivery. Evertonians could talk all day about his partnership with left midfielder Steven Pienaar. Together, the pair of them struck a relationship which is one of the best of recent times.
Baines gave fans so many draw dropping moments. His last-minute free kick equaliser against Chelsea in added time of an FA Cup replay which took the game to penalties, which Everton went on to win, the free kick he scored against Newcastle United in 2013 and who could forget his two free kicks in the same game against West Ham.
Even towards the end of his career, Baines managed to magic up a moment of brilliance when he scored a last-minute equaliser against Leicester in the League Cup.
Everton would go on to lose on penalties, Baines being one of the ones to miss, irony, but seeing him roll back the years and score a wonder goal reminded all blues how fortunate we were to have seen him play over 400 times for the club.
Again, is he worthy of being on the ‘Everton cult heroes’ list? Well, technically, yes!
Abdoulaye Doucoure (2020-)
Evertonians can be forgiven for having no affiliation with some of the squad from the last few years. Back-to-back relegation fights have left some fans feeling out of touch with the current set of players. In fact, you could count on one hand the number of players that will fondly be remembered after they finish playing from our current squad.
Abdoulaye Doucoure will certainly be one of them! His goal at the end of the 22/23 campaign against Bournemouth all but ensured he will be remembered at the club after it turned out to be the winner and the goal that kept Everton in the topflight.
In that season, Doucoure found the net 3 times in the final four games of the season. A brace in a 1-5 demolition of Brighton and the above-mentioned winner v The Cherries.
Since joining the Toffees in 2020, only Calvert Lewin (26) and Richarlison (17) has scored more goals for the club than Doucoure. Also, nobody has won more tackle since 2020 for the club than Doucoure (113). Only Pickford has made more appearances in that time than Doucoure. All of this shows the importance and the role Abdoulaye Doucoure has played for Everton in the past few years.
It’s visible to see the difference Doucoure makes when starting for Everton. Under Frank Lampard’s tenure at the club, Doucoure was phased out of the side and even trained with the U23’s after rumours of a disagreement between the two.
The sacking of Lampard and arrival of Sean Dyche through Doucoure a lifeline at saving his Everton career and due to certain performances in that time, he has rightfully earned a place on this list.
And since we’ve spent the majority of this article talking about Everton cult heroes of the past, it’s nice to give credit where it’s due to an upcoming hero of today. Speaking of which…
Seamus Coleman (2009-)
Seamus was always making this list. Mr Everton. He embodies everything about the football club. Hard working, dedicated, passionate and loyal. Signed from Sligo Rovers for £60,000, Seamus Coleman has to be one of the best bits of business any club has done, ever.
Crazy now that most future Everton cult heroes will earn that amount in a single week!
Currently 14th on the list of all time appearances for the club with 415 appearances in all competitions. Leighton Baines, who is also on this list, made 420 appearances so it is inevitable Coleman will overtake his former full back partner.
Seamus Coleman, the current captain of Everton, hasn’t had an easy few years being the captain of this social experiment of a club.
Back-to-back relegation fights, fans versus the board, a 10-point deduction and also staring at another breach of P&S rules, it would be fair to say no captain of Everton in the history of the club had had such a terrible time.
Despite all of this, Seamus’ determination to keep pushing the players on to keep them focused on maintaining Everton’s top flight status hasn’t wavered. The passion the Irishman has for the club, is second to none and he really is considered amongst the fans as ‘one of us’.
Summary
There are certain players that will never leave our hearts.
For reasons that are equally as clear as they are inexplicable.
And as we’ve seen from these list of Everton cult heroes, it’s the moments of inspiration and wholesomeness that stands them in greater stead than other, more talented alternatives.
Which of these Everton cult heroes do you rate the most?