Bill Kenwright - The Man Who Played It Right ( Revisited )

Bill Kenwright. The greatest Evertonian in modern football. Take a bow. In the face of pressure groups with full access to a little information and a whole host of journalists who bemoaned a stadium issue like it was the only thing that mattered in football, Kenwright has triumphed. He has delivered. He resisted the temptation to sell to the first bidder, held on to the values he held dear in terms of what Everton meant to the community and what a decent team meant to the people in the stands.
A lot of Evertonians will have such an ingrained view of the  old boardroom at Everton that it will matter not one jot as to what happens from this point forward and the accusations have long been in full flow - He did alright on the deal etc. Well hopefully he did. It was his drive and determination to grab the power in the first place which rid the club of Peter Johnson. It's true Kenwright muscled his way to the front of a queue of, well just the one person actually, to snare his boyhood dream. Now, having dedicated some of the best years of his life in taking Everton from perennial relegation candidates to European contenders, he may deserve some credit. A lot of it.

It was once told to me through a person well-placed to know the ins and outs at Everton that all that mattered was what went on on the pitch. It was Goodison Park, the field not the Bullens Road, that was the key to success and everything was geared towards kick-off and making Everton a force on the field. And who could argue. Had Everton gone down a different route, had a fancy stadium but resided in the Championship, they would be history. They would not be looked at by Blue Chip investors. Under Kenwright Everton went from David Ginola to Gerard Deleufeu, from Alex Nyarko to Ross Barkley and Mick Madar to Romelu Lukaku. The Academy is the envy of most, a world class training facility replacing what was a set of Portakabins. But some will still look at the Kings Dock.

Anyone who lives around Liverpool knows that at the time it was a tough sell for the city. A great centre piece for sure, but as the city developed from 2003 to the present day, it is hard to imagine the flood of shoppers and tourists mingling well in the sophisticated bars and attractions which would languish in the shadow of Everton vs Stoke City. A more likely scenario is that once Liverpool Football Club insisted on the fantasy of Stanley Park, the council lost all interest in football on the banks of the Mersey. The tourist attraction was never to be rekindled. Everton not being able to come up with funds may have been why it never really got going but the hurdles which would have followed would no doubt have put pay to that particular deal. Poor penniless Everton was a very convenient narrative for some. 

Destination Kirkby was a far greater stick to beat the regime with. Moving out of the city boundaries was never popular but at that time the football landscape had shifted and revenue streams just to stay afloat were seemingly best protected by a multi functional sport stadium. With Rihanna playing in town at the Arena, depressingly Tesco became Everton's unlikely bedfellows. At this time Everton were seen as a plucky club, David Moyes doing his best to make it look like he was making the best of what he had year on year. It was at this point Kenwright agreed to let go. It was the only way the millionaire could give Evertonians what they desired. Finding a billionaire proved tricky. In reality only Manchester City from that period could boast a successful one. Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers they came and went - Languishing.

Everton have found a place in time that may just be about to favour them. They have resisted venture capitalists ready to cash in on a TV deal and Kenwright has hung around long enough for fashions to change and the wind seems to be blowing in his and Everton's direction. The significant change came when Moshiri went from being the club's biggest single shareholder to majority shareholder last year. Bill had waited for the right man to come along and it would seem he is now here. The new stadium revealed on the riverside, offices in the Liver Building and a new stronger boardroom look to be taking the club down the right avenue.

In the summer of 2015 Everton fans sang loudly that 'money can't buy you Stones'. It was a weird and wonderful experience to see Chelsea told to put their wallet away. Another weird thing happened that summer too. Wayne Rooney returned in a blue shirt. The man who left for fortune and fame came back to test the water.
A new era has begun, and hopefully as time passes Bill Kenwright will take his place among the names he has sang of so proudly himself.