Behind the scenes at Goodison Park captured in amazing images as Everton continue long goodbye

Hundreds of thousands of photos will be taken inside Goodison Park during her historic, final year. Few will be as good as those of Laura Gates.

That is because the 28-year-old knows the stadium intimately. A season ticket holder since her early years, she has experienced the highs and lows of following Everton.

The Grand Old Lady has long been her second home and that intimate knowledge means her eye for a breathtaking image extends beyond her professional one. She knows where to look when emotions peak at their extremes because, so often, she has been there herself.

READ MORE: I helped build training programme for Everton hero - he is one of the best I've worked with

READ MORE: Everton could make bargain transfer move for 'late bloomer' who plays like £32m record-breaker

“I remember my first game being sat in the back of the Gwladys with my older cousin and not being able to see much”, Laura reflects, “I only knew Everton had scored because the celebrations came in a wave and my cousin just picked me up and celebrated with me. “That’s one of my earliest memories - of being in the Gwladys Street and just thinking: ‘God, this is absolutely mental.’ But I loved it. It's stuck with me forever.”

Like for so many others, Goodison is a place of awe for Laura. That comes through in her photos, which often offer a different perspective on life inside a stadium that is so familiar to so many.

While, during any match day, most camera lenses are pointed at the pitch and the players and the action, her focus is often the stadium itself and those within its stands.

Finding meaning in the little things that make the wider experience so special has become a speciality. It has also earned her a following - even if they do not know Laura, many Blues will know of her work through social media, or through her project capturing the turnstiles - a series of surprising poignancy that has tugged at the heartstrings of supporters for whom those entrances have become like second front doors.

Many of her most emotive images, now available in her new book, Forever Everton: A Goodison Farewell, are of the aspects that both show why Goodison is so unique yet also underpin the need for Everton to leave. The flaked paint, chipped woodwork and view-blocking columns that make one of football’s most historic venues a perfection of imperfections.

Laura said: “I do love the stadium. My photography was an accident in a way. A lot of the time it was just me and my phone, and I just snapped pictures on the phone and then I'd tweet them and people would really like them. And sometimes they would go viral.

“Goodison is one of the last great stadiums. It has got so much character. I think that probably makes my job a little bit easier. It is also a place I am so passionate about too. I hope that comes across in the photos. I have a match day routine, and I know the ins and outs of Goodison and, and Everton, it makes it that bit easier because of that connection with Goodison, with the club and even with people at the club as well.”

All of this is not to say Laura, from Wirral, does not enjoy capturing the faces of a matchday. Some of her favourite are those of figures past and present - hero Leighton Baines smiling into her lens after an impromptu chat about the passion for photography they both share. An image of Jordan Pickford in front of the Gwladys and a moody silhouette of Carlo Ancelotti in the dugout have ranked among her most popular.

She loves taking images of the staff and supporters too and the emotions etched onto the faces of programme sellers and supporters gathering for the iconic coach welcomes of recent years thread through the pages of the book.

One of her personal highlights is the close-up of Baines. She said: “He was actually showing us a couple of pictures. That's probably one of my favourite Everton moments that isn’t about football. It's about this really short conversation I had with one of my favourite ever players about the shared passion that we have.

"He is one of my Everton heroes and I had to pluck up the courage to ask whether I could take a portrait and he was more than happy to stand there and smile. He probably won't remember that interaction but that's something that will stay with me forever.”

Laura is yet to become used to her images taking hold among the fanbase, admitting: “It is so overwhelming, but in a good way,” As Goodison moves closer to its final game with every passing home match, the emotions in the sight of her camera will only intensify, as they will no doubt also do behind it.

• You can view more of Laura’s work, and find more details about Forever Everton: A Goodison Farewell, here