A Grand Old Team To Report

Whether it’s covering pre-season tours or getting behind dressing room doors, few people know Everton Football Club like David Prentice.

As a trusted journalist for the Liverpool Echo since the 1980s he had daily visits to the training ground, interviewed players, enjoyed unrivalled access to the manager’s office and found out what was really happening on the blue half of Merseyside.

A long career following the fortunes of his beloved Blues has taken him to some strange places, including Peter Johnson’s yacht in Saint-Tropez, a disco in Italy with Mike Walker and on a boozy night in Dublin with the 1995 FA Cup winning team – a far cry from the days when he would support Everton from the stands and hope to one day wear the famous royal blue strip himself. 

He was with the Blues every step of the way as they clinched that FA Cup and fought off relegation several times in the same decade – forging lasting friendships with Joe Royle and Walter Smith, who were guests at his wedding as he married legend Dixie Dean’s grand-daughter.

He got the inside track on the controversial sale of Duncan Ferguson, was called as a witness in a court case between Wayne Rooney and David Moyes and even had to stand his ground when he was effectively put on trial in front of the entire Everton squad over an article he had written.

After a 45-year love affair with the Blues and a career that has seen many changes in sports journalism A Grand Old Team To Report is a unique collection of Everton memories that tell the stories behind the stories.