'His spirit now lives on inside Goodison' - Howard Kendall's son on Everton tributes to his father

On this day in 2015, Everton Football Club lost one of its most-iconic figures.

To the fans in the Goodison Park stands he was first part of ‘The Holy Trinity’, the most-celebrated midfield in Blues history and he then went on to become the club’s most-successful manager. To friends he was simply known as ‘H’ but to Simon Kendall he was 'Dad'.

Last month it was reported how Howard Kendall will be honoured by having one of the pubs and bars at Everton’s new stadium named after him with other confirmed names including Dixie’s – after the Blues’ record goalscorer Dixie Dean – and Queen’s Head, a regerence to the venue of the meeting where the club’s name was changed from St Domingo’s to Everton in 1879. However, in 2020, five years on from Kendall’s death, Simon opened up to the ECHO about what Everton meant to him, revealing that one of the most-satisfying elements of his father’s legacy has been the Goodison Park tributes.

At the end of the 2015/16 season during which Kendall had passed away aged 69, Everton renamed the Gwladys Street Stand after him with the Park End taking on the name of former chairman Sir Philip Carter who had also died the previous year. Simon, who now lives in New Jersey, acknowledged that seeing the sign with his dad’s name on it is a great pick-me-up on visits to the Blues home.

He told the ECHO: “Whenever I’m back at Goodison it’s the first thing I look towards when I get inside the stadium. It always puts a huge smile on my face. It’s a great tribute to Dad and very fitting that the club selected the Gwladys Street End.

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