Goodison Park hosts its final league Merseyside derby this weekend.

Telegraph Sport speaks to some of the heroes who left their mark on the history of one of English football’s most iconic fixtures at the grand old stadium.

Everton 1 Liverpool 0, League Division One, October 28, 1978

“Our policing style will be firm, fair and friendly, although not quite as firm as our well-meaning officer who cleared Andy King off the pitch in 1978!” (Merseyside Police)

There are many reasons why a winning derby goal enters folklore. Maybe it was spectacular. Maybe it was scored by the ultimate cult hero, a player who represented the enthusiasm and passion of every spectator. Maybe it ended a long barren run without a win over local rivals. Andy King’s volley against Bob Paisley’s European champions had all of the above as Everton secured their first derby success for seven years.

But what took it to another level was the unique nature of the post-match celebrations. This was an era when BBC’S Grandstand and regional news bulletins would switch to the stadium for an instant pitch-side response, and on this occasion the reporter Richard Duckenfield thought his luck was in as he managed to get hold of King amid the pitch invasion.

As fans celebrated, an over-officious Merseyside Police officer intervened, blissfully unaware that the match-winner was about to describe his moment of triumph live to the nation.

“Get off the pitch,” said the police officer shoving player and reporter to the sidelines, the clip soon becoming a regular on the bloopers programme, It’ll be Alright on the Night.

BBC

Forty-six years on, Merseyside Police felt compelled to reassure Everton supporters that they have no intention of reconstructing that scene after the final league derby at Goodison, and in the event of the broadcasters seeking a pitch-side, post-match interview full discretion will be exercised.

Evertonians will be especially pleased that Chief Inspector Chris Barnes, the match commander for Everton v Liverpool this weekend, will be diligent on this matter.

In a statement to The Telegraph, chief inspector Barnes said: “We look forward as always to this weekend’s derby, and will have a comprehensive policing operation in place, alongside Everton Football Club, in preparation for the match.

“As always, our policing style will be firm, fair and friendly, although not quite as firm as our well-meaning officer who cleared Andy King off the pitch in 1978!”

Everton 0 Liverpool 5, League Division One, November 6, 1982

“I might try and steal some of the Goodison grass before the stadium gets knocked down” (Ian Rush)

Liverpool’s goalscoring legend Ian Rush scored 25 Merseyside derby goals and none were sweeter than the four in this Goodison drubbing.

“Bob Paisley came to me before the game and said: ‘No one has scored a derby hat-trick for nearly 50 years.’ It was as if he saw this coming so it was in my mind from the start of the game. We knew early on Everton had a defensive problem because Glenn Keeley was getting beaten for pace by Kenny Dalglish – and Kenny didn’t have any pace! [He laughs].

“Keeley got sent off before half-time and the space was there for us. Everton were playing a high line, which was unbelievable against my pace, to be honest. Alan Hansen and Sammy Lee just kept making the right runs and seeing the right passes and the chances kept coming. If it wasn’t for Neville Southall, we might have had a few more.

“Three of my goals were with my left foot. I’d always felt comfortable on my left despite being right-footed. Despite being right-handed, my mum made me write with my left. And that’s why I can’t write! Using my right and left foot helped my football career, though.

“Everton had made me even more determined to score against them because I grew up an Evertonian watching my hero Bob Latchford and I wanted to sign for them when I left Chester City. The Everton manager at the time, Gordon Lee, came to watch me and said I wasn’t good enough. I signed for Liverpool and said from day one I would make them pay for that, and I did.

“After scoring four, I loved playing Everton home and away. I could sense how worried they were that I would score. One of my last goals was for Newcastle at Goodison in the FA Cup from a John Barnes cross.

“Evertonians have always been good to me. They know I was a Blue as a kid, so the stick for me has always been friendly. Some of my best mates played for Everton – Neville, Kevin Ratcliffe, Peter Reid and Graeme Sharp – so I have fond memories as a supporter and player.

“I’m thinking I should rob a bit of the grass before Goodison goes to keep as a souvenir. Maybe if I do it before the game this weekend I can force a deflection and claim one more Goodison assist!

“In terms of Goodison, the four-goal game has to be my favourite memory. To hear Liverpool fans singing about it every game to this day makes it even more special. It makes me proud of what I achieved for Liverpool.

“I’ll be at Goodison this weekend but I’m not sure how many more times I’ll visit now before it’s gone. It’s sad it is going. I’m relieved Liverpool were able to redevelop Anfield so all the memories are still there.

“But I’m hoping when they knock Goodison down they’ll create the ‘Ian Rush Car Park’ to remember my goals there!”

Everton 1 Liverpool 0, League Division One, March 20, 1988

“The atmosphere for the Goodison derby was better than at Anfield” (Wayne Clarke)

Kenny Dalglish’s side had gone 29 games unbeaten at the start of a season, matching the record of Don Revie’s Leeds of 1973-74. But in the Everton team was the brother of Elland Road legend Allan ‘Sniffer’ Clarke. Wayne takes up the story…

“I believe in fate and there were so many circumstances that led me to score the winner that day. Everyone wanted to talk to my brother before the game and he was asked to work for Radio Merseyside to cover the match. He said to me: ‘I only want two things from you today. A car park space at Goodison and a winning goal!’ I knew I could get the first sorted but thought the second would be tougher.

“It was quite surreal how everything fell into place. No one could have planned Everton would be the 30th game and standing in the way of Liverpool’s record.

“We were reigning champions at the time, but going into that game, Liverpool were flying so we were massive underdogs. But we couldn’t have been more motivated. The derbies were always massive but, the way the fixture landed, it was a chance to give our fans something to cheer after a disappointing season.

“The goal came quite early, 14 minutes in. We had a couple of corners in succession and Bruce Grobbelaar was known for coming for everything. He struggled to get near the ball, Sharpey [Graeme Sharp] nudged it across and I was on the far post to put it in the corner with my left foot.

“We had something to hold on to then, and I am not sure there were too many chances for Liverpool on the day.

“My abiding memory is of my brother Allan finding me and giving me a big kiss on the cheek straight after the match. There is a picture of that somewhere.

“The memory of scoring the winner in such a big game is always with you. I used to drive to training with Adrian Heath and Neil Adams. Inchy [Heath] told me when I first moved to Everton that the atmosphere for the Goodison derby was better than at Anfield – a bit more intense. I agreed after playing in those games. Obviously, it was an era of success for Everton and Goodison was explosive.

“Ask players who have never played for Everton and you will find many who say Goodison has a special place in their heart. As an opponent, you would look at the fixture list and look forward to going there. Not only was there the atmosphere and sense of history, but the playing surface was always one of the best during that era.

“I think I scored more important goals for Everton to help win us the title the previous season – there was a winner at Arsenal the previous year that was crucial to us winning the title.

“But whenever I go to Goodison Park, it’s the derby goal that is mentioned. I have not been so often in the last few years. David Moyes was the manager the last time I was there. I would like to see all the lads I played with again before the last Goodison game, getting the camaraderie going again. You lose track of time when you see how few games are left there.”

Everton 4 Liverpool 4, FA Cup fifth round replay, February 20, 1991

“Someone was shouting over the fence: ‘Lads, Dalglish has resigned!’ (Tony Cottee)

After a goalless FA Cup fifth-round draw at Anfield, Liverpool headed to Goodison Park still dreaming of another league and Cup double. Tony Cottee, Everton’s two-goal hero, recalls a game where the drama extended beyond the final whistle.

“There are two questions which I always get asked. Liverpool fans will always say to me: ‘Do you realise it is your fault that Kenny Dalglish resigned straight after this game?’ Honestly, they still blame me! And the other is from the Evertonians who want to know if this is the best match I ever played. I have to remind them I didn’t play for 84 minutes. I was a sub enjoying it with everyone else.

“If you ever hear anyone saying how the pace of football is much quicker now than it was in the 1980s, ask them to watch this game again. I was on the old Goodison bench, sunk below pitch level, as entertained as everyone else. Not only was it as quick as you could see, it also had a physicality to it and the skill level was amazing, especially when the pitch was not the best that night. The quality served up was as good as any derby, and when you look back at the goals, they were a combination of the brilliant and the scrappy.

“There are so many reasons why this one stands out. Derbies are not usually like this. You expect tight, sometimes quite uneventful games. We played a lot of 0-0 draws, or you would get narrow 1-0 wins. This was just sensational.

“When we were 3-2 down, it felt like I was warming up forever. When I got the call to come on I was ready. Howard Kendall put his arm around me and said: ‘Come on, give us a goal.’ I looked up at the clock and saw 84 minutes and was thinking: ‘Are you sure? What do you expect me to do in six minutes?’

“I touched the ball twice before extra-time, the first a simple 10-yard lay-off. But when I went on I had my dad’s voice in my head and his advice was to always stay down the middle because that’s where you’ll get your chance. When the ball dropped to me for our third, I pounced in front of Mike Newell to hit it first time. The feeling was on a par with my Everton debut when I scored a Goodison hat-trick. You felt the joy everywhere, even more than when I scored again to equalise in extra-time.

“It is fair to say the Liverpool defending on this night was not vintage. For an opposing player, Goodison is such an intimidating venue and even the best can make mistakes. I benefited from Liverpool’s. I was right-footed and both my goals were on my weaker foot. Anticipation was a big part of my game, and then you need the composure to finish.

“A few days later we were at the old Bellefield training ground when we all heard someone shouting over the fence.

‘Lads, Dalglish has resigned!’ We never believed it until we got back to the dressing room. Going into the second replay all the momentum was with us. It was a more typical derby game and Dave Watson got us the winner. As much as I love Goodison, it is the right time to move. The atmosphere has always been the fans’ creation and the Everton fans can create special nights at the sensational new stadium.”

Everton 2 Liverpool 3, Premier League, April 16, 2001

“Wherever I go in the world with Liverpool it is always that free-kick that is remembered.” (Gary McAllister)

Liverpool were chasing a cup treble and Champions League qualification for the first time since 1985 and were about to drop valuable points after Igor Biscan’s red card. Seconds remained as Gary McAllister stepped forward...

“The more the years pass by, the further out the free-kick was. When I look at it now, I am saying 45 yards. Or maybe it was a mile and a half away from goal!

“We had a free-kick a few minutes before in virtually the same position. I signalled to the back post to float one up there because we had a lot of big lads in the side like Sami Hyypia, Emile Heskey and Markus Babbel. Sami won a header and it flashed just by the post.

“So I am standing in the same position. I signalled again to take the same kind of set-piece, but as I am doing it I can see [Everton goalkeeper] Paul Gerrard is thinking: ‘This is the last kick of the game. He is going to put a high one in here so I am going to come and catch this.’

“I just had that feeling he was ready to move in that direction, so I kept signalling – bluffing him – that I was making the same play as before. If you watch the replay, you will see Jamie Carragher come behind me. It was like he knew what I was thinking because he said: ‘F---, don’t you even think about shooting’.

“But I had a technique where I knew I could dummy run and just go for it if I saw the keeper make a move. Everything said to me I should have a go. The pitch was greasy so if I could connect properly it could skid along and gather pace, and Everton didn’t have much of a wall because they never thought I would shoot.

“The wall gave me a good line of sight because I knew if I could get it over the Everton player – I’m pretty sure it was Niclas Alexandersson – it was on target. So I just wanted to whip it over his shoulder.

“It was what I call a ‘f--- it moment’. I had to go for it.

“I thought later, if it had not come off I would have looked the biggest idiot ever. The lads would have mullered me.

“I never tire of watching it. The goal will never go away. I was only at Liverpool for two years – I won the title with Leeds United – but wherever I go in the world with Liverpool it is always that derby goal that is remembered. This was the game which elevated our belief going for the treble and Champions League qualification – a big result beyond winning a Merseyside derby, which was big enough.

“The Everton fans have never forgotten it, too. If Rushie is getting a car park for his hat-trick when they knock down Goodison, I want a bronze plaque for that goal!

“Forget the rivalry, I love Goodison – a real, old-school stadium. It was the first top-flight game I played with Leeds after being promoted in 1990. It will not just be Everton fans who miss Goodison.

“As much as Manchester United and Arsenal games were the biggest in a season during my time, for the local contingent in our dressing room – Steven Gerrard, Carra, Michael Owen and Danny Murphy – whenever the fixture list came out the first thing they wanted to know was: ‘When is the derby?’ That was the fixture every season.”

Everton 1 Liverpool 0, Wednesday, February 4, 2009

“Goodison can be such a weapon – one tackle gets everyone going” (Dan Gosling)

It was the 118th minute of a tense cup tie. Everton’s Andy van der Meyde crossed and… ITV cut to an advert. They returned to Everton celebrations. Match-winner Dan Gosling recalls the Goodison Derby goal the nation missed.

“As a 19-year-old living the dream, I never understood the magnitude of scoring a derby winner until years later. You feel the excitement at the time, obviously. As soon as it happened it was like a whirlwind, doing post-match interviews and everyone happy for you. But there was one thing that happened after the game which showed how it needed to sink in.

“When I went into the dressing room everyone in there gave me a round of applause and one of the lads, Jose Baxter, asked me for my shirt. I didn’t think anything of it and chucked it to him. Then one of the senior lads came up to me and said: ‘What are you doing? You will regret giving that away. Go and get it back.’ It was like Jose recognised the importance of the goal more than I did.

“Now I’ve got that shirt in a frame in my house with a plaque. I also have a photograph of my celebrations, with both team line-ups. I always said that moment was up there as a highlight. Now I think it is the No 1.

“Whenever I am on holiday I can guarantee there will always be at least one Scouser who will come up to me and say: ‘Thanks for that moment.’ You only fully appreciate what it meant years later. The advert probably makes it more famous!

“My mum was watching in Devon and she told me after the game the TV went off just as the cross came in. It was only when it came back on and she saw I was at the bottom of a pile-on that she realised I’d scored.

“I was doing the post-match interview with Joleon Lescott when it was first mentioned the goal had not gone on air live. I was buzzing so much it never registered.

“I look back now and think someone from Tic Tac should have sent me a few boxes! Could you imagine if it happened today? With all the social media around I might have got myself a good commercial deal out of it or got to do my own advert. I would have been able to pounce on it, for sure. [He laughs].

“It was a special win because we felt like underdogs that night. Liverpool had a lot of world-class players. But under David Moyes we had that ability to come together. At Goodison, there was one guarantee that no one would work harder than us, and for a midweek game under the lights there is no better atmosphere.

“It is so tight to the pitch you hear everything – good and bad – but in the main it was always special and on the nights when the players and fans came together, anyone could be beaten. The stadium can be such a weapon. One tackle gets everyone going. Evening games were always so much better. I’m sure the players wish every derby was at night. It is not so easy to get going in 12.30 games.”

The top 10 Goodison Park Merseyside derbies

From Sandy Young’s four-goal salvo in the Edwardian age to Gary McAllister’s last-gasp 40-yarder some 97 years later Telegraph Sport counts down 10 of the best Everton v Liverpool encounters.

10. Everton 0 Liverpool 4, FA Cup fourth round, January 29, 1955

Recently relegated to the second division, cup minnows Liverpool pursued a shock, seeking their first away win of the campaign at the home of their more accomplished neighbours. Billy Liddell inspired a 4-0 win, prompting one national newspaper to acclaim “the sensation of the season”. Liverpool’s players were rewarded with a 10 shillings bonus.

9. Everton 1 Liverpool 0, League Division One, March 20, 1988

The phrase ‘must-win game’ is overused in football. For Evertonians, victory here was a compulsion, not an option, to prevent Liverpool from extending their unbeaten streak to a record-breaking 30 league games. Step forward Wayne Clarke for one of the most meaningful derby winners.

8. Everton 0 Liverpool 3, League Division One, December 6, 1969

It is a truth universally acknowledged that derbies are remembered for their poor unfortunates as much as their heroes. For a generation of football-mad Merseyside youngsters ‘doing a Sandy Brown’ refers to the Goodison derby when Everton’s defender scored the classic, career-defining own goal as Bill Shankly’s side beat the champions-in-waiting.

7. Everton 1 Liverpool 0, League Division One, October 28, 1978

There have been higher quality and more action-packed Goodison derbies, but given the context, none have been more savoured by Evertonians than the afternoon which ended a painful, seven-year spell without an Everton win. Andy King’s place as one of the most popular and romanticised players in Goodison history was secure as he decided the derby with a 20-yard volley into the top corner.

6. Everton 2 Liverpool 3, Premier League, April 16, 2001

Five goals, two penalties and a sending-off. Derbies are not meant to be as thrilling as this. For 10-man Liverpool, Gary McAllister’s 40-yard winner was one of the defining moments of an era, Gérard Houllier’s side completing a club treble and inspiring the run which returned the club to the Champions League for the first time in 16 years.

5. Everton 2 Liverpool 0, Premier League, November 21, 1994

Everton were bottom of the league and had sent an SOS to former striker Joe Royle. His first supercharged fixture as manager unleashed the ‘dogs of war’ and Duncan Ferguson started bullying Liverpool defenders for the next four years. Goodison has never sounded so intimidating, triggering a period of derby domination.

4. Everton 0 Liverpool 5, League Division One, November 6, 1982

Liverpool fans still sing about this at every game. For Reds it is about the genius of Ian Rush and his four-goal blitz, and for Blues the unfortunate Glenn Keeley whose one and only appearance in an Everton shirt entailed his sending-off as Bob Paisley’s side ran riot. Rush would pile on the misery for Evertonians for the rest of the decade.

3. Everton 5 Liverpool 2, League Division One, April 2, 1904

Only one Everton player has struck a hat-trick in a Goodison derby, Alex ‘Sandy’ Young grabbing four in this long-celebrated game which – according to The Liverpool Courier – was ‘contested in the best spirit, and unfair tactics were rare’. Off the pitch, the match-winner was lethal, too. He later emigrated to Australia where he shot his brother!

2. Everton 4 Liverpool 4, FA Cup 5th Round Replay, February 20, 1991

For sheer drama, nothing eclipses the FA Cup fifth-round replay of 1991 as Everton kept fighting back and Kenny Dalglish decided to quit in the aftermath – the decision which rocked the football world and meant Liverpool had to wait another 29 years before they ruled the English game again.

1. Everton 0 Liverpool 0, League Division One, May 3, 1989

In its darkest hour, Merseyside football united. This was Liverpool’s first competitive match after the Hillsborough tragedy. Nobody recalls any incidents in the game. It doesn’t matter. For all the rivalry, the true spirit of the fixture and the city was encapsulated right here.