St Yates's Day at 10 - TT Meets John Achterberg
By Matthew Jones
January 26 2011
As part of our continued ten year anniversary celebrations of the 3-0 win at Everton in the FA Cup fourth round, Total Tranmere reporter Matthew Jones met up with Tranmere Rovers John Achterberg for an indepth interview about the game...
As part of our look back at Tranmere's 3-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park ten years ago, we met up with Tranmere legend and goalkeeper that day, John Achterberg.
The giant goalkeeper, who spent over ten years at Prenton Park as both a goalkeeper and a coach, would eventually be awarded a testimonial at Prenton Park, which was fittingly played against Rovers' Meresyide rivals.
The Dutchman, who is now a goalkeeping coach for Liverpool, reflected nostaglically on what were some of his great days on the Wirral, especially what it was like to beat Everton so comfortably....
Matthew Jones: There were quite a few big games around that time for the club, how did Everton rank compared to all the others?
John Achterberg: Big games are always good to be involved in. It’s also a test for yourself really, to see the level you can play at and if you can compete with the so called players from the highest level.
MJ: How would you say it ranked compared to other games around that time, such as Southampton, Leeds and Coventry?
JA: They were good teams as well so at that time they were probably also classed as big games, because obviously they were at that time in the Premier League so you treat them the same really.
MJ: Did you go into the game confident of winning?
JA: Not really thinking about it really, you had nothing to lose so it was easy to play and go out and try and do the same things and try and keep the ball out of the net.
MJ: On a personal level, I know you were quite a perfectionist, what was it like to keep a clean sheet at Goodison?
JA: It was obviously great to go there and win 3-0 and keep a clean sheet. I didn’t have to make too many good saves, I was focusing a lot more on positioning, and being there at the right moment for balls over the top and stuff. For the whole club it was an unbelievable result really.
MJ: What it was it like having over 6,000 Tranmere fans there cheering you on?
JA: The atmosphere for the whole game was good, from the first to the last minute. Obviously near the end the Everton supporters left a bit early but that is obviously part of football when your team is not winning.
MJ: You had quite a few ex-Everton players in the squad at the time; Stuart Barlow, Graham Allen, and Paul Rideout and Kevin Sheedy was assistant manager. Did they give any advice to the team on how to quieten the Everton crowd before the game?
JA: No, you don’t talk about it, you just go out, you have a game plan and you try and play well. That’s basically how it goes. You’re working hard as a team to try and press them, to not let them play, and that’s why we were good, to be honest. We were quite a fit team, so we could compete with anyone.
MJ: Do you think your record in the cup before that game, going into that game, had Everton scared? Do you think they were worried before the game kicked off?
JA: No I can’t see that to be honest. They would probably worry aboute bigger clubs than Tranmere, but they probably also realised that it was not going to be a walkover, that they would have to be on their normal game to have a chance of getting a good result.
MJ: Can you remember what John Aldridge’s team talk was before the match?
JA: No, you can’t, I think it was probably along the lines of go out and enjoy it and work hard.
MJ: What was the difference then between the cup games and league games?
JA: It’s probably because you raise your game and you’re working as a team. Obviously in the same year we didn’t do too well in the league, but there’s no pressure to get a result in the cup, you’ve nothing to lose. It’s a different type of game than if you’re playing and if you need the win.
MJ: Was Aldridge a great motivator in the dressing room, especially ahead of a game against Everton who he obviously didn’t like too much being a Liverpool fan as well?
JA: Yeah Aldo was a very good motivator. He had a great amount of passion; he created an atmosphere that you always have to be ready to play well because if you’re not playing well there was a chance that you might not play the next game.
I think at that time it worked really well, because we had a bigger squad, all players from probably the number one to the number 25 had played league football so they’d probably all be able to figure in the team. Everybody was fighting for their place.
There was a good atmosphere as well because he’d obviously been a player himself and he obviously had a combination of banter with the boys and the hard work next to it.
MJ: The back four for that game, as well as you in goal, was Graham Allen, Richard Jobson, Steve Yates and Clint Hill; was that one of the strongest back fours you played in for Tranmere?
JA: I think John McGreal was a good centre half as well. Steve Yates was a great full-back and Gareth Roberts was a good left-back, so if you want to go that way it’s probably Gareth Roberts left-back, Clint Hill and John McGreal, because John had a very good pass and was good from the back whilst Clint was good in the air and hard to beat, and then Steve Yates was more for me a right-back who could do a good job and also could score goals.
MJ: He scored two goals that day, was it a particular tactic to get him up in the area?
JA: No, because Steve Yates was not the biggest. But he was good at timing his jumping and was not bad in the air, adding goals and stuff.
MJ: One of the goals he scored was that lob at the back post, and Koumas also scored a lob. With Thomas Mhyre having played for Tranmere for a month earlier in the season, had you spotted that particular weakness or was it just a coincidence?
JA: No, that just happened. You’re not playing a ball like that. That situation just happened in the game. Thomas Mhyre who was playing in goal, I suppose he was a decent keeper because he played for Everton but he was not particularly special when he was at Tranmere.
MJ: How much of a buzz and how much confidence did winning so comfortably give the team going into the next round against Southampton?
JA: We lived by the game really. Every game is different. We didn’t gain more confidence really, because we knew already from games before that we could beat anybody on our day, and that was how we went into any game, with good mental spirit and good attitude and a want to work for each other.
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