When Ferguson left Tannadice and joined Rangers for £4m, the move was the measure of his dreams.
He was a Rangers boy. He revered the manager, Walter Smith. He idolised the iconic striker, Ally McCoist.
The whole thing became a nightmare. Wild living, not enough game-time, scrutiny, trouble, minders, claustrophobia. And then he went for McStay.
Smith sat him down and told him he had to leave Glasgow for his own good. Sentencing was coming – Barlinnie not far away – but in the meantime he needed a new start. He went to Everton for a three-month loan that became a love affair.
TE: When Walter said you had to go, how did you feel?
DF: I cried my eyes out when he said it. I’d let him down. He was telling me I was coming back after the loan and I’m sure he was genuine at the time. But I cried. I’d failed. I was drinking heavier. I was out of control.
TE: The book is so honest. It’s a terrific read. You weren’t at Everton long and you got done for drink driving.
DF: That’s right. On my own. Middle of the city centre. Saturday night. What do you do? I went for a drink, stupidly. We’ve got a game on the Monday against Liverpool and I’m out on a Saturday night. Nuts.
TE: This was Joe Royle’s first match as Everton manager?
DF: Yeah and I’m in the police station, 3am Sunday. Liverpool on Monday. The star striker’s in the nick.
TE: There’s a good end to that story.
DF: Yeah, they let me out.
TE: Well, yeah, but you scored?
DF: Of course. That’s me, isn’t it? That’s me. No preparation. In the jail. Get out and the rest is history. I battered them. Second half particularly. Guilt. That’s what I was running on. Guilt.
TE: And you win the FA Cup? You scored 73 goals in 273 games for Everton across two spells spanning a decade. They love you down there. How long did it take for you to realise Everton – this is the place for me?
DF: About a week. Once I was in that city, I wasn’t coming back. I had no minders. Nobody was targeting me. They knew me, but it wasn’t the Rangers-Celtic thing, was it? There’s no sectarianism. I felt free. And I was fitter. And I was getting minutes.
TE: Why does this club mean so much to you?
DF: The fans took to me. There was never any trouble off the pitch, only the drink driving offence. They needed somebody like me at the club. The team wasn’t very good. They had a good tradition of big Scottish number nines. I fitted that mould.
TE: They could see the honesty.
DF: I was aggressive. The fans liked that. They wanted somebody to get stuck in for them. It all turned for me then. You’re playing against Liverpool, Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham. You’re playing against some serious teams. It brought the best out of me. I still love the city. I still live down there. It’s a great place to be.
TE: Striker, captain and then manager. That must have been cosmic for you?
DF: What a feeling. It was an incredible moment in my life and my career. One that I’ll never forget. I’d captained the team, I’d scored a lot of goals for the club and then to manage them. So I’ve done it all there, really.
TE: You worked under Carlo Ancelotti at Everton and speak glowingly about him.
DF: I was on my mate’s boat in Croatia, right? And Carlo’s in the vicinity on his own boat. He’s on the phone. “I’m coming to see you.” “OK, no problem, Carlo.”
I gave him the coordinates and he’s coming out of the horizon in this big boat. He paid a right few quid for it. I could see him waving. As he’s getting closer and closer, his boat is getting smaller. Our boat was about four times bigger than his. He spent his week on my mate’s boat. His boat got left. It was really funny, like. A great fella. We just bonded.
