His boyhood dream of playing for Everton FC in the Premier League was shattered. Then his hopes of a further career as a professional footballer were ruined by the same heart condition which almost cost Fabrice Muamba his life.
But Scouser Steven Beck dealt with the setbacks, and has found a way to make a living in the game he has been in love with from an early age.
Beck, 28, was at Everton for eight years from the age of 12 until he was released at 20, and is using what he learned from that spell, along with his subsequent experience at other clubs including Wigan and TNS, in his role as a FIFA-licenced agent.
“I was a young central midfielder but I never quite managed to break into the first-team set-up at Everton,” says Beck, who is hoping to build a top agency with 11 Sports Management.
“But I had a lot of memorable moments in my playing days, not least playing against Liverpool in the Champions League while I was at TNS.
“I was tasked with marking Xabi Alonso so it was a big night. Our manager told us we had a chance and we gave a really good account of ourselves even though we lost 3-0. Looking back we surprised a lot of people with the way we played against such big odds.”
Despite his post-Everton playing days boasting much promise, a routine scan brought Beck’s world crashing down.
“I’d had a double hernia and they did a scan and found a condition which eventually turned out to be hypocardiomyopathy, which is what Muamba has,” he explains.
“I didn’t want to stop playing and even managed to go on for a while at different lower league clubs but by the age of 26 I was finished.
“When I stopped my health got worse and I would black out sometimes. It was a challenging time.”
Initially Beck wanted to pursue a coaching career.
“I flung myself head first into that and I’m a UEFA A licensed coach,” he says.
“I did my badges with Gianfranco Zola and loved it but being an agent is what feels most natural and with my contacts in the game I think I’m in a perfect place to help other players,” he says.
“The coaching background will be useful of course, but I’m doing what I love now and I couldn’t be happier.”
Warwick have their roots in birth of the Blues
Everton’s latest sponsors are not just any company keen to link-up with one of English football’s biggest clubs.
It might not seem like a South African wealth management firm would have any particular links with the Toffees, but this is where Warwick Wealth are a surprise package.
The firm, which will sponsor the club’s home FA Cup fixtures for the rest of the current campaign and both domestic cup competitions throughout the 2014/15 season, is owned by a family of staunch Evertonians – the Kilbrides – who can trace their support back to 1878 and witnessed the club’s first league title in 1890/91.
Chairman of Warwick Wealth, Ian Kilbride, is a regular visitor to Goodison Park, despite being based in South Africa, and is delighted with the new partnership.
He said: “Our relationship with Everton stretches back to an advertising deal agreed in 1995 and consequently this new sponsorship deal will take that partnership through to its 20th anniversary in May 2015.”
Place your name on the walls of history
Evertonians have a chance to make a permanent mark on Goodison as part of plans to restore the famous Dixie Dean statue to its original home and reshape the entrance to the stadium.
The statue, which was unveiled in May 2001, will be the centrepiece of a brand new gateway to Goodison, surrounded by a commemorative wall made up of personalised engraved stones that supporters can purchase.
The new area, which will be called Dixie’s Wall of Fame and unveiled on May 5, has been the focus of a project co-ordinated by the Everton Fans’ Forum. Chairman Tony Bott said: “We’re really proud to have worked on a project that will forever leave its mark on the history of our club.
“I’ve no doubt that many Evertonians will be proud to take up their place on Dixie’s Wall of Fame.” Granites can now be purchased from www.evertonfc.com/goodisongranites
Cottee rueful over his treble trouble
Former Blues striker Tony Cottee was better known for his goals than hard-man antics, but in a recent interview he recalled one incident which marred his clean-cut reputation.
Tony Cottee
Asked in Backpass magazine about his worst footballing memories, the former West Ham and Toffees forward said: “As good as my debuts were, it’s my sending offs that stick out.
“All three were for retaliation.I just lost my rag three times and got sent off three times! I got sent off for Everton in a pre season friendly. I was also dismissed on my first game back at West Ham for a lunge on Liverpool’s Rob Jones. Those are memories I’d like to wipe out.”
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