The Black Horse is preparing for an emotional day as Everton end an era at Goodison Park
June Sewards (Licensee) of the Black Horse with staff Dorian Frost(far left) and Michael Nutbrown
June Sewards (Licensee) of the Black Horse with staff Dorian Frost(far left) and Michael Nutbrown(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
"I think there'll be quite a lot of tears in here on Sunday - including me,", says June Sewards. June, 63, is licensee of The Black Horse pub on County Road in Walton and she is busy preparing for Sunday - Everton men's final game at their home of 133 years, Goodison Park.
Evertonian June, originally from Croxteth but a Walton resident since 1984, has been in charge of the venue for 28 years. She loves running what has always been a bustling matchday pub, integral to so many Blues' matchday experiences for years. She tells the ECHO: "Running this pub is great. The customers are absolutely spot on - you will never meet nicer customers than ours who come in on a matchday.
"The people are lovely. They're really lovely people. I've seen grandads, sons, granddaughters, grandsons, all growing up. There's a young lad who used to come in when he was around five. He's 26 now. He still comes and goes the game."
June has many highlights from her time at the helm of the pub. But one day stands out - the relief of escaping from relegation for a second successive season in 2023, when Abdoulaye Doucoure's goal against Bournemouth on the final day preserved Everton's Premier League status.
Reflecting on that, June adds: "When we stayed up in 2023 there were people crying in here. There were kids that all came in with their dads, they were crying because they were so overjoyed that Everton stayed up. Even adults - to see that is heartbreaking, to see what football does to people.
"You know what it's like with Everton and Liverpool fans. Liverpool fans wind you up and we wind them up. They were saying 'oh you're going to be playing second division, you're going to be c**p next year, there'll be no derby'.
"Staying up was the best part for me. We didn't get relegated and that was the main thing.
"But no matter whether we win or we lose, people always come back in afterwards. The same people come back. You don't lose anyone. Evertonians stick around whether we win or lose. It's great.
An Everton fan at the Black Horse
"When we've won, we've had some good times in the garden. Everyone has been so happy and jolly. They all love you, they want to kiss you and hug you.
"It's unreal, the amount of people that come through here on a matchday. They're all good people."
Though there is excitement for Sunday, which promises to be a historic day for everyone connected to Everton, June is prepared for an emotional affair. It is the end of an era for Everton - though the club announced on Tuesday that Goodison will become the home of Everton Women from the start of next season, the men's team's move to a new home at Bramley-Moore Dock represents a seismic change.
Suddenly pubs like The Black Horse will not be part of so many matchgoers' routines every other week. It will take some getting used to, according to June.
She says: "Things won't quite be the same. We have a coach that pulls up from Wales every matchday - 12.20pm, it stops right outside and a full bus comes in. We're going to really miss them, lovely, lovely people."
But for now, June's focus is making sure that Sunday is as good as it can be. She will be opening early as fans gather around Goodison to welcome the team bus and drink in the atmosphere.
About that, she says: "For Sunday, we've been getting prepared since Monday. We have an outside bar and a massive garden and a big television, so we've got to make sure that's all ready.
The Black Horse, Walton
"We have to put massive orders in to make sure we don't run out of stock. We will decorate on Saturday morning, so there will be flags all the way through the inside.
"I've decorated some of the stuff behind the bar with blue, but most of it will get done on Saturday. That's a 7am start.
"Then on Sunday we're opening for 9am, so I will be up and about from 6.30am to make sure we're ready. It's going to be a very emotional day for me, I've been here for 28 years, serving matchday customers, I was in the Spellow for five years with matchday customers.
"I think there will be a lot of tears. I've had a couple of text messages from some of the customers asking if they can have photographs with me.
"People are hoping they will come back but they might not see us for a long time. It's really going to be a sad day for me."