In many ways, Tony Grant was a hark to a bygone, more cultured and less physical age; his style of football infused with traditions established at Goodison by the likes of Wally Fielding, Martin Dobson and Colin Harvey. 

The local midfielder made his breakthrough into the Everton team of the mid-1990s. A slight, technically gifted player, whose passing sometimes seemed to be on a different plane to some of his colleagues, Evertonians soon realized that he was a special prospect indeed, dubbing him ‘Grantona’ for some of the similarities he shared with the Manchester United talisman. Never was the young player better than slipping a slide rule ball through to Andrei Kanchelskis, the flying Ukrainian winger, who seemed to thrive whenever he played with Grant. England under-21 recognition was soon forthcoming for the young player.

Before he could truly make his mark and call a starting place his own, however, the midfielder’s progress was halted by a series of debilitating injuries, which disrupted his most promising spells.  His physical slightness seemed to make him more prone to injuries, and while he improved his strength and stamina, sometimes the pace and physicality of the Premier League seemed too much for him. At the same time, Grant, who was a footballing aristocrat, was forced to make his mark in a team of yeoman. In short, the odds were always stacked against him.

Transfer listed by Walter Smith at the end of the 1998/99 season, he joined up with Joe Royle at Manchester City the following December, later playing for Burnley, before embarking on a tour of the lower leagues, his potential never quite realized. 

Subsequently, Grant held a series of coaching and scouting positions. He was first team coach at Blackburn Rovers, assistant manager at Blackpool and Forest Green Rovers – where he was reunited with Duncan Ferguson, who was manager.  He also worked closely with former Liverpool player, Robbie Fowler, serving as his assistant when he managed Brisbane Roar, East Bengal and Al-Qadsiah.

Speaking of Grant the footballer in 1997, Joe Royle said: ‘Tony has the potential to be a superstar, there is no midfielder in the country who has all the qualities he has.  He can defend and win the ball, he can pass, he can make chances and he can score goals.  If he can put that all together he could become a truly outstanding midfielder.’ In a different, calmer, less physical era, or perhaps, if he was nurtured in a better team, the slight figure of Grant would surely have written his name into Everton lore. What a shame his chance came when it did.