Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has joined non-league club Marine FC to help out in an advisory capacity.
The Sky Sports pundit, who was born in Bootle and still lives nearby, has closely followed the club’s rise to the National League North, the sixth tier of English football.
Carragher, 48, will be used to further grow the club after two promotions in recent years and a financial boost after an inspired run to the FA Cup third round in 2021.
‘Marine is a proper community football club with good people involved and a clear vision for where it wants to go,’ said Carragher in a statement.
‘I’ve enjoyed watching the progress the club has made over recent years and I’m pleased to be able to support the club in an advisory capacity going forward.’
Marine finished 12th in National League North this season. They are hopeful of moving from their 3,000-capacity Rossett Park ground in the coming years and want to submit a planning application for a new home in the next six months.
CEO James Leary added: ‘This is a brilliant moment for Marine FC. Jamie is someone who cares deeply about football and the local community and he’s followed closely what we have been building here over the last few years.
‘His experience and relationships will be a huge help to the club as we continue moving Marine forward over the coming years.’
The club were put on the map in 2021 with the FA Cup run which saw them host Tottenham behind closed doors due to the second Covid lockdown. They came up with the clever idea to sell ‘virtual tickets’ for £10 a go and sold 30,000 of them to people all over the world.
Jose Mourinho, then the Spurs manager, bought one as well as several first-team players.
Neil Young, who was Marine boss at the time but moved to a director of football role in 2025, recalled that day to Daily Mail Sport a year later – and told us: ‘That run transformed our football club.
‘Before that we were averaging gates of about 350 and now we’re getting about 1,300. We’ve got a new pitch which is well-used by the community and local schools.
‘We have used the money to renovate our function rooms, it was just a bar now it’s a restaurant which is open seven days a week. And obviously we’ve been able to increase the playing budget and increase the facilities throughout the club.
‘When the draw was made, Spurs were top of the Premier League. You weren’t really allowed to mix but Jose Mourinho bought myself a signed shirt, and one for our goalkeeper who was also Portuguese.
‘Jose went out of his way before the game for half an hour to have a good chat with our players, he was a really nice guy. The profile of what happened in those cup games brought bigger attention to us, we get Liverpool, Everton and also Tottenham supporters visiting us now!’
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