Tranmere and Everton in
warm tribute to John Achertberg
By Nick Hilton, Daily Post
TRANMERE followers turned out in numbers to pay a warm
tribute to John Achterberg.
Scores of former players, managers and coaches and 3,316
spectators enjoyed an evening of fun and nostalgia to mark the
11-year contribution of the Rovers’ goalkeeper and goalkeeping
coach.
The turnout was more important than the scorelines in a double
header of entertainment. A young Everton side took the on the
pitch honours on the main event, playing some slick attacking
football to notch three first half goals.
Achterberg departed the action after an hour to a warm ovasion,
although ever the perfectionist he will have been annoyed to
have conceded goals on his big night.
Manager Ronnie Moore played a poignant tribute to the big
Dutchman whose contribution to the Rovers cause goes well beyond
his 311 first team appearances.
Moore said “John Achterberg has been a magnificent servant to
this club. You rarely see loyalty like this these days.
“You can talk about John’s professionalism and dedication as a
player. But he is just as committed to the work he does on the
coaching side with the senior players and the kids.
“You will find him coaching youngsters through the week and he
goes to all of the School of Excellence games on Sundays,
working with the keepers aged 9 to 16.
“He’s put a lot back into this club and the local community and
deserves his testimonial.”
Tranmere’s No. 1 goalkeeper Danny Coyne said: “John has been a
fantastic servant to this club. He works so hard behind the
scenes and takes his job very seriously.
“He’s always studying things to help him in his coaching. I’ve
never seen anyone as dedicated as him.”
Achterberg said “I have been very lucky to have spent the last
11 years of my career at Tranmere. Not many players get the
chance to spend that much time at a place where they are happy.
“I want to thank all of the managers and coaching staff I have
worked with here. We’ve had some great times together and I hope
there are more ahead.”
For many of the older supporters the night’s first game between
two teams of Tranmere “legends” had special appeal.
The Veterans did not disappoint, producing an entertaining
40-minute contest played at a strolling pace but sprinkled with
intuitive passing and movement
Many of the players who appeared in Achterberg’s debut
performance against Swindon Town in September 1998 were
re-united including Graham Allen, Clint Hill, Dave Challinor,
Kenny Irons, Georges Santos, Liam O’Brien, Gary Jones, Lee Jones
and Alan Mahon.
The goals in a 2-2 draw were scored by Alex Hay, Santos, John
Mullin and Gary Jones, whose equaliser was set up by David
Kelly, returning the compliment for Rovers’ Worthington Cup
Final strike at Wembley in 2000.
One of the biggest cheers of the night was reserved for the
appearance of Iain Hume, who has recently overcome a serious
head injury to resume his playing career with Barnsley.
Tranmere may have more first team experience on the field in the
main game but they couldn’t match the clinical finishing of
Everton’s young Academy players.
Kieran Agard, a striker the Blues snapped up following his
release by Arsenal a couple of years ago, scored with a fizzing
25-yard shot and a diving header. Centreback Shane Duffy headed
in a free kick between Agard’s two strikes to give Everton
control of the game.
There was disappointment for Tranmere’s Chris Greenacre, seeing
his first action since suffering a foot injury in December.
The experienced striker limped out of the action after 37
minutes to be replaced by youth team hot shot Josh Macauley.
TRANMERE ROVERS: Achterberg (Kennedy 60), Edds (Holmes 46),
Waterfall, Richardson, Taylor (Corrigan 62), Sonko (Wilson 46),
Jennings (Barnett 46), Fraughan, Burns, Curran, Greenacre (Macauley
37).
EVERTON: Nash, Irving, Barnett, Wallace, Duffy, Sinnott,
Forshaw, Akpan, Agard, Kissock, Gosling (McAleny 64). Subs:
Davies, Codling, Nsiala, Sheppard, Kinsella.
REFEREE: Mr Mike Dean (Wirral).
ATT: 3,316