Derek Temple, one of only five men to have ever scored an FA Cup final winning goal for Everton, celebrates his 80th birthday today!
Merseyside born and bred, Temple joined the Everton groundstaff in 1954, spurning offers from Liverpool, Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, and made his first-team debut in a 2-1 victory against Newcastle United on 30 March 1957.
A week later he kept his place in the team and bagged the first of his 83 goals for Everton in a 2-2 draw at Sheffield Wednesday.
However, it’s another match against Wednesday for which he will always be remembered – scoring the decisive goal in a dramatic 3-2 Cup final win against The Owls at Wembley in 1966.
It was a day, and a night, to remember.
“We had a big reception at the Grosvenor House Hotel, the drinks were flowing and it was a great night,” he recalled. “Afterwards, a few of us and our wives went into London to Danny La Rue’s club. Ronnie Corbett was in there!”
Temple is still a regular at home games and is as passionate about the Blues now as he was when he proudly wore the jersey. He shares the confidence that is currently sweeping through Goodison Park.
“I firmly believe that we could be on the cusp of a real upturn,” he said. “I want us to be successful and when you get to 80 you haven’t got that much time for it to happen!
“The manager has got us playing some lovely football and when we play with pace and get the ball forward quickly I think we can be a match for anyone. We are nice to watch and that’s because we’ve got good players.
“I am really positive about the rest of the season. It was a very good result at Chelsea and we are definitely a team that’s on the up.”
Reflecting on his own career, Temple had no hesitation when selecting the best player he shared a dressing room with.
“To my mind, Bobby Collins was the best player I ever played with,” he insisted. “He was only 5’ 4” with size four boots, but what a competitor. He was probably a bit over-keen sometimes!
“Some people called him a dirty player and maybe there was something in that when he went to Leeds but what a player. He could score goals, he could win the ball and he could ping passes sixty yards no problem.
“I always liked Scottish players because there were no lost causes with them. Harry Catterick from time to time would go up to Scotland on the quiet and bring back a great player – the likes of Alex Parker and Jimmy Gabriel.”
Derek Temple has been labelled a legend on many occasions but it’s not something that sit’s comfortably on his shoulders. That’s because he’s a quiet, unassuming individual and a thorough gentleman.
Everybody associated with Everton Football Club wishes him all the very best on this special occasion.
A full birthday feature with Derek Temple will appear in the Cardiff City programme on Saturday 24 March.
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