Nil Satis Nisi Optimum: Bob Latchford

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Bob Latchford - Everton Legend

Si, Sunday 18 September 2005 - 07:35:10

Bob Latchford

Born : 18 January 1951

Birthplace : Birmingham

Height : 6ft 1ins

"Big Bad Bob" as Latchford was affectionately known, started his career by scoring twice on his Birmingham City debut when he was 18, and after 5 years, taking in 158 league appearances for the St Andrews club in which he scored 68 goals, Everton boss Billy Bingham paid £350,000 to bring his talents to Goodison Park, with Howard Kendall also moving in the opposite direction to "sweeten" the deal.

Although Latchford took a while to settle at Goodison, once he did, the goals came thick and fast, being Everton's leading goalscorer for four consecutive seasons from 1975, and netting a total of 106 goals in 235 appearances.

In the 1977-78 season, Latchford was dominant, and scored his impressive 30 goal haul, winning the hearts of Evertonians, and a hefty cash prize of £10,000 courtesy of the Daily Mail! The following section which details the game in which Latchford scored his 30th goal is re-produced from James Corbett's excellent book "Everton : The School of Science" with permission from the author :

Nearly forty thousand people packed into Goodison to see the game but when Everton swept into a commanding 3-0 lead without Latchford getting on the score-sheet, many expected his luck to have run out. But Latchford was indomitable. He scored the fourth, and with 10 minutes left Everton were awarded a penalty. Latchford made no mistake in finishing off the 6-0 drubbing [of Chelsea] to set Goodison wild with cheering and collect the money.

It was the week of the fiftieth anniversary of Dixie Dean's 60 goal haul, and in a gesture that his generous predecessor would have smiled on, half the prize money went to the PFA Benevolent Fund while the rest was split among the players and the ground staff.

Latchford himself took home just £192, and four years later was still trying to convince the taxman that he did not owe anything!

Also during that season, Latchford earned his first of 12 full England caps in a World Cup qualifying match, and was only ever on the losing side once during his England career, in his last game, against Austria.

He continued his goalscoring form into the following season, scoring a stunning five goals in the demolition of Wimbledon, and he stayed at Goodison until 1982, when Howard Kendall, the player he had replaced at Goodison, sold him to Swansea City.

This image was scanned by Watty and shows all of Bob's goals and who they were scored against.