Bake's Gone Home

Brian flew home to the States yesterday. His American club Columbus Crew wanted the striker back for the start of the MLS season on Sunday. So Bake will go straight into their squad.
Bake says: “The fans have been just awesome. I’ll miss the place, no doubt about it. From the day I got here until the day I left, I’ve enjoyed every second of it."

Thanks & Good Luck. (21/03/03)

Macca On His Way Back Home

A very big thank you to our American friend. David Moyes has confirmed Macca will go back to the States after the Arsenal game. With a very good record of 4 goals in 8 games he will be missed.

Moyesy said: We are sorry to lose him and he will be missed.He has done extremely well, exactly what we had hoped for if not better when we signed him. He has played a big part in our season at Everton and we wish him all the very best for the future.”(19/03/03)

Oh No You Won't

It looks like Brian will be going back to States. The MLS, who hold his contract, will want £2M for him.

MLS man Trey Fitzgerald said: "The fact is that we have not received any sort of offer from Everton, nor have we ever specified a transfer fee.Everton have consistently told us that they have no interest in making the loan permanent because of their financial priorities. We are therefore anticipating that Brian will be returning at the end of the loan period. There is nothing to consider at this stage."(05/03/03)

Yes, We'll Have Him

Brian is a wanted man, but only if he can get him on the cheap.

Moyesy said: “If the opportunity arose, we would like to sign Brian. But we would not want to spend too much on a 30-year-old. The MLS hold his contract and we have to deal directly with them. They will give us a price and we will have to see how much it is, but it will probably be too high for us.” (02/03/03)

Moyesy is The Man

In an interview with World Soccer Weekly, 'Bake McBride' has praised Everton boss, David Moyes.

Bake says: "He’s a great coach. His attitude about work ethic and about playing together as a team is amazing. The thing that a lot of people don’t talk about is his ability and willingness to make sure that every single subject is covered. The preparation for each game is down to the nth degree. The day before a game sometimes we spend between 30 minutes to an hour on making sure we understand what is needed for the game and that’s above and beyond the training routine. He demands the most out of you. I
I enjoy that. He’ll tell you when you’re doing it [right] but he’ll also tell you when you’re not. It’s constructive criticism and that’s something that I enjoy. It makes me a better player so I guess I enjoy that." (28/02/03)

Macca To Stay

Macca is due to leave the club after the away game at Highbury on 22nd March 2003. That would have been that, but with Bri scoring four goals in five games, both the player & the management may have second thoughts about staying longer. The crowd favourite is currently keeping Super Kev out of the team, & with Big Dunc - remember him? still miles away from playing for the first team, you never know.

Macca says: "I just need to concentrate on the three months and be ready to go back to Columbus and help out the Crew. If something were to come about, then of course I'd have to take a different view of things, but right now I look at it as three months here and after that I will be back in Columbus. When I came over here I didn't want to ruffle any feathers - I just wanted to do anything to help out and that is still the case. It is important that Everton keep doing well, because it would be great to see them in Europe next year. Whatever the coach decides is best for the team is the decision I will take." (20/02/03)

It's 4 in 5

Macca scored his 4th goal of the season on Saturday, but it wasn't enough to get the Toffeemen any points.

Macca said: "There were spells in the second half, especially after we had just equalised, when it seemed like the parting of the seas, but we just couldn't get another goal. There were times when we did well but we know we can do a lot better." (11/02/03)

$100 A Goal

McBride has promised to pay the £100 (about £185) to the Central Ohio Diabetes Association for every goal he scores.
Macca says: "They are only a small organisation, it's just for central Ohio and not the National Diabetes Association which is huge, and they need all the help they can get. At the end of each season I total up how much I owe them. It's $100 per goal, per assist and per win for whatever team I'm playing for whether it's Everton, Columbus Crew or the national team. So Saturday has cost me $300 but it's good money as far as I'm concerned. I'm doing something I love for a living so it's important to give something back. I don't begrudge a single cent of it. They need more money than I could give them anyway."

It's Getting Better

It's 3 in 2 for Macca. He looks to be some player. The Boss is happy, Brian is happy and so are we.

Moyesy said: "His performance was excellent, he gives you great honesty and commitment. It is players like that who contribute to the team overall and win you matches. Brian has come straight into the Premiership, scored last week in his first game for us and got another two here and the way he played he could have had a hat-trick. He works so hard, he won headers for us in both boxes and that's important to any team."
Macca said: "I'm here to give support to Kevin, that's the situation. He's the man and I'm only here as back-up, so I won't be complaining if I'm left out, not at all. It was important that Kevin got onto the pitch to aid that recovery. But all in all it was a lot of fun, two goals for me is fine, but only as long as we win. I scored at Spurs but we lost, so this was far more satisfying." (19/01/03)

Good Start

Macca got off to a good if not winning start. He was very pleased to have scored but he wanted to win the game more than anything. He has recieved some praise from the boss and fellow scorer Stevie Watson.

Moyesy said:"I thought he did well for us. He never shirked any challenges and he took his goal well and did great to give us the full 90 minutes."

Macca said: “People have said that I couldn’t have asked for a better start, but I wanted a winning start. That’s the most important thing - to go out and win games.”

Stevie Wat said:"He told me before the game that he had not played a match since October. When you consider that, I thought he was unbelievable.(15/01/03)

Officially Ours

Macca's clearance came through Monday Afternoon. He is now available to play against Spurs on Sunday, if Super Kev doesn't recover from injury.

Macca says: “I am looking forward to playing alongside Wayne Rooney. He’s got a great first touch and he’s a very exciting player. It’s been fun training alongside everybody, the amount of talent this team has is unbelievable - everybody is a good passer and has great vision. The group of guys here stick together and I think there’s a really good team spirit here. That goes a long way." Welcome aboard. (07/01/03)

McBride Must Fight For Place

Once the work permit comes through, Macca will begin his 3 month Goodison career and that is when the hard work starts. He must fight for his place.

Moyesy says: "He'll give us cover for Kevin Campbell. He's a good centre-forward, he's good in the air, he's very mobile, a great lad to have around the place as well. We're short of cover for Kevin, with Duncan Ferguson and Nick Chadwick not being available and Joe-Max Moore leaving us, we've been a bit short up-front. So, we've had to bring someone in and I know Brian well and exactly what he'll give us. He may play, he may not play. If the players continue to play as well as they have done this season, there will be no need to use him." (05/01/03)