Everton's Managers' Records
Background

 (Click for:  Aug 1886 - Oct 1948   Oct 1948 - Apr 1973   Apr 1973 - Jun 1987    Jun 1987 - May 1997

Jun 1997 - Dec 2019   Dec 2019- Now
  
Everton Managers' Rankings     Opposition Managers)

Football clubs originally dealt with team selection by way of committee - with one person, usually a Director or Club Secretary, assuming greater responsibility than others for team affairs.

From their first competitive fixture in 1887 up until March 1946 Everton adhered to this model and never appointed a formal team manager. The following people were regarded as the prime movers in team selection and player transfers but none of them had the word “Manager” anywhere in the title of their post - they were all "Club Secretary" - and none of them fully acted like a manager as we know the role today:

Alexander Nisbet (Aug 1886 - Jun 1888)   William Barclay (Jun 1888 - Aug 1889)   Dick Molyneux (Aug 1889 - Sep 1901)
William Cuff       (Sep 1901 - Dec 1918)   William Sawyer  (Dec 1918 - Nov 1919)   Thomas McIntosh (Dec 1919 - Oct 1935)

Thomas McIntosh had become Everton Secretary in 1919 and was still in that role in 1932 when he was diagnosed with cancer.
From 1932 onwards, Theo Kelly acted as secretary on-and-off during McIntosh’s many enforced absences. However, formally speaking, McIntosh remained as Secretary until his death on 29 October 1935.

By that time, many football clubs had got around to appointing “Managers” or “Secretary-Managers” (doing most of what we see
managers doing today) and following McIntosh’s death Everton’s board debated long-and-hard about whether to appoint a
“Team Manager”, a “Secretary-Manager” or another “Secretary”.

Finally, on 25 February 1936, they appointed Theo Kelly as “Secretary”. Not "Manager” or “Secretary-Manager” – just “Secretary”.
He was undoubtedly the prime mover when it came to first-team affairs and team selection (and had been since McIntosh's
death) but he was not yet a “Manager” as we now understand the term.

Kelly continued in that role until, on 5 March 1946, Everton caught up with nearly all other clubs in England and appointed him, on
a salary of £1,500 per annum, as “Secretary-Manager”. Everton’s Managerial dynasty had begun!

(Although, just to be awkward, the club later gave Ian Buchan the official title of "Chief Coach" and it was only from his 10th
game in charge, after a board announcement on 20 September 1956, that Buchan officially had control over team selection!)

Click on the links above to see the full records of all of Everton's bosses, whether they were called 'Club Secretary', 'Secretary-Manager', 'Manager' or whatever!