John Morrissey (born 18 April 1940) is an English former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

for

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, Everton and

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...

, and won the Football League Championship with Everton in both 1962–63 and 1969–70.

Career

Morrissey was born in

, and began his football career as a junior with

, signing professional forms when he turned 17, and making his debut in September 1957. He played as an

outside left In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

, and was unable to dislodge

Alan A'Court Alan A'Court (30 September 1934 – 14 December 2009) was an English professional footballer who mostly played for Liverpool. He gained five caps for England and represented the nation at the 1958 FIFA World Cup. Playing career Born in Rainhil ...

from that position in the first team. In 1962 he "crossed the park" to join Everton for a fee of £10,000, sold without manager

Bill Shankly William Shankly (2 September 1913 – 29 September 1981) was a Scottish association football, football player and Manager (association football), manager who is best known for his time as manager of Liverpool F.C., Liverpool. Shankly brought su ...

's knowledge. He scored on his Everton debut, in the first league

Merseyside derby The Merseyside derby is an association football match between Everton F.C., Everton and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, two clubs based in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is the longest running top-flight local derby, derby in England, with its fi ...

in 11 seasons, which finished as a 2–2 draw, and went on to help the club to the

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

title in his first season. He scored the goal in the semi-final that took Everton to the

1968 FA Cup Final The 1968 FA Cup final was the 87th final of the FA Cup. It took place on 18 May 1968 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between West Bromwich Albion and Everton. West Brom won 1–0 after extra time. Jeff Astle scored the winning goal, thus ...

, and played on the losing side in that match. In the 1969–70 season he helped Everton win the

for a second time playing the full 90 minutes in 41 of the 42 games and contributing nine goals from the left-wing. In 10 years with Everton, Morrissey scored 50 goals from 314 games in all competitions. Despite his small stature Morrissey had a reputation as an uncompromising player,

Jimmy Greaves James Peter Greaves (20 February 1940 – 19 September 2021) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward. Regarded as one of the greatest strikers of all time and one of England's best ever players, he is England's fifth- ...

once commenting that he "always got the retaliation in first!"

Johnny Giles Michael John Giles (born 6 November 1940) is an Irish former association football player and manager best remembered for his time as a midfielder with Leeds United in the 1960s and 1970s. After retiring from management in 1985, Giles served as ...

, whilst recognising Morrissey's unflinching style, commented on him: "Well Johnny Morrissey, first of all, was a top-class player. He was a terrific player." He finished his career with a brief stay at

, which brought his total of League appearances over the 300 mark. His son

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

had a successful career with

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...

making 470 League appearances for them between 1985 and 1999.

Honours

Everton *

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

runner-up: 1967–68

References

External links

League stats
at Neil Brown's site 1940 births Living people Footballers from Liverpool English men's footballers Men's association football wingers Everton F.C. players Liverpool F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players English Football League players English Football League representative players {{england-footy-midfielder-1940s-stub