Harry Catterick


Born: 26th November 1919, Darlington.
Died: 9th March 1985, Goodison Park.
Position: Centre-forward.
Height: 5ft 9in.
Weight: 10st 10lb.

Playing Career

Everton: 1937 - 1952.
Crewe Alexandra: 1952.

Managerial Career

Manager: Crewe Alexandra, December 1951 - June 1953.
Manager: Rochdale, June 1953 - August 1958.
Manager: Sheffield Wednesday, August 1958 - April 1961.
Manager: Everton, April 1961 - April 1973.
Manager: Preston North End, August 1975 - May 1977.

Honours

Football League champions: 1963, 1970.
Division Two champions: 1959.
FA Cup winners: 1966.
FA Cup runners-up: 1968.

Of the managers who left of their own volition, the resignation of Harry Catterick was undoubtedly the one to cause most disappointment to the fans. In his first season 1958-59 in charge they won the Second Division championship, in 1959-60 they reached the FA Cup semi-finals and in 1960-61 finished runners-up to Spur’ s double winning side. At Everton he proved to be one of the very best of post-war managers.

Catterick had a fairly undistinguished playing career, he remained loyal to Everton for many years but spent much of that time as an understudy to Tommy Lawton & Jock Dodds. It was also interrupted by the war and a number of serious injuries. In December 1951 he moved to Crewe Alexandra as their player-manager but at the end of his first season, he retired from playing but continued to manage the club until June 1953.

In his five years at Rochdale he developed their most successful team in many years. His ability as a manager was beginning to be recognised and in August 1958, following Eric Taylor’ s decision to relinquish management of the team, Catterick was appointed as the Owl’ s manager.

Catterick’ s legacy to the club was a splendid team, firmly established in the First Divsion and a place in Europe for the first time but it was also a set of supporters intensely disappointed at losing his sevices and with a desire for success which had come so tantalisingly close.


Back to the Wednesday Archive

If you have any comments, or are aware of any errors / omissions then please email me :-

Stuart Jackson