Kevin Ratcliffe
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kevin Ratcliffe | ||
| Date of birth | 12 November 1960 | ||
| Place of birth | Mancot, Wales | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||
| Playing position | Central defender/ Left back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Everton | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1980–1992 | Everton | 348 | (2) |
| 1992 | Dundee | 4 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | Cardiff City | 25 | (1) |
| 1993 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | (0) |
| 1994 | Derby County | 6 | (0) |
| 1994–1995 | Chester City | 23 | (0) |
| Total | 406 | (3) | |
| National team | |||
| 1981–1993 | Wales | 59 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1995–1999 | Chester City | ||
| 1999–2003 | Shrewsbury Town | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Kevin Ratcliffe (born 12 November 1960) is a Welsh former footballer who spent most of his career playing for Everton. He was born in Mancot, near Queensferry in Flintshire, Wales.
Ratcliffe joined Everton as an apprentice in 1977 and made his debut on 12 March 1980 at Old Trafford, Manchester after replacing John Gidman through injury, but was not a first team regular until 1982. He was initially used as a left back with mixed results, but his form improved dramatically when moved to centre back. Around this time Ipswich Town manager Bobby Robson was interested in Ratcliffe, but at the PFA Awards that year Howard Kendall reputedly told Robson to "F*** O**" showing his confidence in the young Ratcliffe. In 1983 at the age of 23 he was made captain, just as the club began a highly successful spell. Whilst captain Ratcliffe won the 1984 FA Cup Final, the Football League Championship in 1984–85 and 1986–87 and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1984–85. There were also two other FA Cup finals. Ratcliffe made 461 appearances for Everton and scored two goals in that time (one a 30-yarder at Anfield).
Ratcliffe was renowned for his robust approach to the game and for being a tough tackler. He was sent off early in his career for a head butt in 1981 on Tommy Hutchison against Manchester City in 1981. He was also involved in an infamous incident with Vinnie Jones in 1989 against Wimbledon. In a bad tempered match, Jones had put in a late tackle against striker Graeme Sharp flooring him, and Ratcliffe steamed forward to challenge Jones aggressively. Jones brushed his head forward in what appeared to be a headbutt, with Ratcliffe going down. Jones later claimed in his autobiography that his head barely touched Ratcliffe's and Ratcliffe had feigned contact to get him sent off, and expressed disappointment at the dishonesty of his fellow "hard man". This was later confirmed in Graeme Sharp's book, Sharpy, My Story when he admitted both him and Ratcliffe exaggerated Jones's contact on them both to get him sent off to their pleasure.
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