Julian Dowe spent time at Manchester United, Everton and Manchester City as a youngster, but it was his youth career rather than his pro career which was truly remarkable, albeit not in the way he might have hoped.
Dowe grew up at No.4 Kippax Street, right across from Maine Road, but he never supported a team and didn’t even get into football into the 1986 World Cup. Predictably, it was Maradona that caught his eye.
He started to play himself, as an attacker, of course, and made such an impact that Manchester United came calling. But as would become the theme of Dowe’s career, it was not all plain sailing.
“There was one night Brian Kidd’s post-training talk went on a bit longer than usual,” he says. “All the other kids could walk home, but I had to get the bus. The talk went on so long I missed the last one.
“I was 12 and stuck in the middle of Salford, and with the best will in the world it wasn’t as cosmopolitan as it is now.
“Nowadays the club would sort it, but back then it was different. I was from a mixed heritage background and got chased by a few locals during the night, and it just put me off a bit.”
On to Everton
Dowe’s mum never went to see him play as a youngster and still hadn’t seen him play by the time he retired from football.
He never hired an agent either, and without that support network, he acknowledges now it was all too easy for people to influence his decisions throughout his career. But at that young age, he was making decisions by himself and chose to leave United to play local football again.
But his talent was so great that no sooner would one opportunity pass, another would quickly arise.
“After United I went back to playing for the junior teams, and in this one game I had scouts from Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Leeds and Everton watching me,” he says.
“By the end of the game there was only one scout left, the one from Everton. Apparently, he thought I was so good he told all the scouts I’d been signed so they all buggered off!
“The youth coach at Everton was fantastic. He came to the house and saw the dynamics – single parents, kid who wouldn’t be able to get to training – so they used to send a car to get me to Liverpool and back. Even if I stayed over, I stayed at the manager’s house.”
It was going well, but things would change just as Dowe was getting going as a combination of injuries and a change of manager saw him apply for his release papers.
“In one game against…
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