The Big Interview (LEP) - Phil Jevons

Those who bluff and swank their way through professional football should turn a corner and keep walking if they see Phil Jevons ahead. Jevons, Morecambe's top scorer, is a personable and modest man, and during his time he has seen football change beyond recognition since he buffed Duncan Ferguson's boots as an Everton apprentice at Goodison Park.

'I don't like fakes, never have done.' Phil Jevons, Jan 2010

A product of Everton's academy, he emerged as the star of their FA Youth Cup winning team, shoulder to shoulder with Francis Jeffers, Leon Osman and Danny Cadamarteri.

We sat in the deserted visitors' dressing room at Christie Park on a bone-chilling January afternoon and talked about the game and his life.

"It's another world now, the Premier League is showbiz," said Jevons.

"You look at Arsenal play and it's beautiful. It has changed for the better, but it does bug me when I see these guys diving around with their headbands and gloves on, trying to con referees. I don't like fakes, never have done.

"I was brought up at Everton in a good environment, and that was special. Every morning I'd get in early before the rest, run Duncan Ferguson's bath, get him his cuppa and a copy of the Daily Star. He was a hard lad, but he always treated me with respect and great kindness and you remember things like that in life."

By Tony Dewhurst for the Lancashire Evening Post.