Brian Labone
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 Labone at the 1970 FIFA World Cup | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Brian Leslie Labone | ||
| Date of birth | 23 January 1940 | ||
| Place of birth | Liverpool, Lancashire, England | ||
| Date of death | 24 April 2006 (aged 66) | ||
| Place of death | Liverpool, England | ||
| Position(s) |
Centre half | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1958–1971 | Everton | 451 | (2) |
| International career | |||
| 1962–1970 | England | 26 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Brian Leslie Labone (23 January 1940 – 24 April 2006) was an English
Early life
Brian Labone was born in
Labone attended the Liverpool Collegiate School.
Career
Liverpool-born Labone chose to join Everton at 17 in July 1957 instead of going to university. His debut for the first team was in 1958.[1] He was widely regarded as one of the best central defenders of his era. He was a strong tackler, good in the air, adequately fast but he rarely used his left foot.
Labone made 451 League appearances for Everton and a total of 534 in all competitions. Labone showed his high opinion of Everton in a simple quote "One Evertonian is worth twenty Liverpudlians"
Labone played 26 times for
In 1970–71 Labone sustained a serious injury to his Achilles tendon and retired from playing. A few years earlier he had announced, at the beginning of the season, his intention to retire at the end of that season, in typical fashion giving the club as much notice as possible so that he could be replaced. Such was the outcry however that he changed his mind and played on for two more seasons.
Later life and death
Labone maintained his links with Everton where he worked as a guide for guests & visitors and a website columnist. Labone was included in Everton's 'Greatest Ever Team'[5] as voted for by the fans at the start of the 2003–04 season to mark the club's 125th anniversary.
Whilst returning home from an Everton fans awards evening at the Winslow Hotel in
Another former Everton captain, Kevin Ratcliffe, paid the following tribute: "Brian was Everton. If you could put together a team of every player that has ever captained Everton, every one of us would turn to Brian to lead us out. He will always be known as the captain of Everton". Everton Chairman Bill Kenwright also paid tribute by saying: "On the foot of the Dixie Dean statue outside Goodison Park are the words 'Footballer, Gentleman, Evertonian'. Those words summed up Dixie and they apply, equally, to the great Brian Labone."[7] Part of Everton's home ground, Goodison Park, was named in his honour.[8]
Honours
Everton[9]
References
- ^ a b c "Brian Labone". Everton F.C. Archived from the original on 13 November 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
- ^ Ancestry
- ^ "1963/64 Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "1970/71 Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Greatest Ever Everton Team". Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2008.
- ^ Liverpool Echo
- ^ "Everton bid farewell to 'last of the Corinthians'". The Guardian. 25 April 2006. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021.
- ^ "Brian Labone Suite". Everton F.C. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
- ^ Szczepanik, Nick (11 June 2012). "Gordon West obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
- ^ "1963/64 Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "1970/71 Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
External links
- BBC Online report of his death.
- Everton mourn former captain Labone, The Daily Telegraph, 25 April 2006.
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