Neville Is A Blueblood

Chairman selects skipper for special award.

Bill Kenwright heaped praise on the influence and leadership of skipper Phil Neville after selecting him for the 2012 Chairman’s Blueblood Award.

Each year it has now become customary for Mr Kenwright to bestow the honour upon those he feels embody the Evertonian spirit.

And this season his choice – warmly received by those in attendance at Liverpool’s St George’s Hall – was Neville, a man who has grown into a role as the figurehead of the playing staff since arriving from Manchester United in 2005.

Mr Kenwright said: “What clinched it for me was at Old Trafford when we were 3-1 down and our captain was slapping his hands together and saying ‘we are not done yet’ and we, of course, were not done yet.

“We have seen him do it many, many times and I know the players rate and respect him so highly.

“He is simply one of the best captains in the Premier League and one of the best captains Everton has ever had.”

Neville has made more than 250 appearances in his seven seasons at Goodison Park and has very much become David Moyes’ trusted on-field lieutenant.

But the 35-year-old’s influence extends so much further than that with him an essential cog behind the scenes at Finch Farm.

The epitome of what a skipper should be, Neville is a source of advice for players of all ages but particularly the emerging talents.

Aside from the football, the skipper’s ambassadorial qualities shouldn’t be underestimated as, whether facing the media or general public, he frequently projects the values and qualities the Club represents.