A union of Everton, Legends and the Church

Langton Nyakwenda, Sports Reporter

FOUNDED in 1878, before playing a critical role in the establishment of the Football League in England a decade later, Everton Football Club are one of the oldest clubs in the game.

Yet their ties with the African continent have remained marginal, 145 years after their creation. Everton only made their maiden visit to East Africa in July 2017, when a Wayne Rooney-inspired Toffees beat Gor Mahia of Kenya 2-1 in front of 40,000 people at the National Stadium in Tanzania.

The trip was part of a shirt sponsorship deal with Kenyan-based mobile betting company SportPesa. It also marked the beginning of an ambitious bid by Everton son club to launch a quest to conquer “an unexplored Premier League frontier.” Everton then spread their tentacles to Zimbabwe in June, when they entered into a partnership with Legends Football Academy, a Harare-based nursery that is has grown in leaps and bounds.

But, there was already a connection between Zimbabwe and the Merseyside club, a few weeks prior to the landmark partnership between Everton and Legends.

Fascinatingly, the Everton home ground is exceptional in the sense that it has a church, St Luke’s Anglican, within its premises. As a result, Everton do not usually play early kick-offs on Sundays to allow Sunday services at the church.

Coincidentally, there’s also an Anglican Diocese named St Luke’s in Greendale, Harare. It is this connection that prompted the local church to conduct prayers for Everton when they faced the grim prospect of relegation from the English Premiership last season. Everton went into their last game of the season needing nothing short of victory to survive and they responded with a hard fought 1-0 win over Bournemouth at Goodison Park on May 28.

It was a drama-filled Super Sunday final day, which saw Leeds United and Leicester City eventually joining already relegated Southampton in the second tier Championship. Apparently, this connection was born after a group of English investors, who are also of Anglican inclination and are staunch Everton supporters, came to Zimbabwe in search of investment opportunities before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.

Zimmundas company has interests in medicinal cannabis and mining, but some of its key associates including 41-year-old Paul Antony Jones, also attend St Luke’s Anglican church in Greendale. “I am glad to be part of St Luke’s Anglican Church in Greendale and we are proud to be the church in Zimbabwe that helped Everton beat relegation last season,” Jones told The Zimpapers Sports Hub. “I was born an Everton supporter back home in England and my wish is for the club to have a bigger support base in Zimbabwe.

“When we came here to Zimbabwe for investment we then discovered that there was a church with the same name as ours back in Everton.”That’s when we started building a relationship between the two parishes. Our company Zimmundas also helps the local Anglican church in its various programs including the construction of a university in Marondera.”

Subsequently, a strong synergy has now been established between St Luke’s Everton and St Luke’s Greendale, thanks also to Everton-based Anglican church member Alan Middleton and his son Graham.

The football partnership between Everton and Legends is also being viewed as an avenue for more connections between the Merseyside club and Zimbabwe. “The fact that Everton chose to partner a Zimbabwean academy is proof that they believe there is good football talent in this country.

“I hope one day a Zimbabwean player will feature for Everton in the Premier League.” And St Luke’s Greendale congregants will once again pray for Everton for the when the 2023/2024 Premiership season which kicks off on August 11. The Toffees begin their campaign with a home clash against Fulham at Goodison on August 12. For Jones, the St Luke’s parishioners and the Legends Academy, every game of the new season will now matter even more.

“The team didn’t do well last season so this time around we do not want any last minute drama. So obviously, St Luke’s Greendale parish will pray for Everton for each and every game. “The team should fight every second and not wait for the last game,” said Jones.

He added: “I grew up in Everton and they have passionate supporters, I have also realised there are some who now support the team here in Zimbabwe, especially our church members at St Luke’s Greendale. “I would be happy to see more Everton supporters in Zimbabwe.” For Jones, this is a case of faith, sport and investment combining to great effect.