Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Michael Hawkins, Ronny Goodlass, Michael Cullen, John Purcell, Sally Tryer, Adam Byrne, Katie King, James Ledsham, Danny Noble, Lisa Symonds.

At best Alan Ball was a world beater, a man to whom Pele described at the finest player in an England shirt, arguably the best player on the pitch on the day the country won the World Cup in July 1966, tenacious, a spirited player to whom Alf Ramsey made a hero of and to whom Don Revie discarded cruelly and without pomp and ceremony, at worst…well there was no worst, just dogged by ill fortune and personal disasters that would go hand in hand with the Lancashire’s lad’s demeanour and psyche for his entire life.

At best, Alan Ball gave nothing less all his life, even if the odds at times were stacked against him and in Kenny O’ Connell’s touching play Ball of Fire, the life of the talented footballer, the family man and true determination and industry that he showed for Blackpool, Everton, Arsenal, Southampton and England were there for the Epstein Theatre crowd to enjoy and remember as images flashed on a big screen and life was made extraordinary.

If a life is touched by so much insane glory and so much personal tragedy, the loss of his mentor, his father who guided him every step of the way, his beloved mother and wife who nurtured him and acted as council, the loss of his daughter and the upsetting way in which his life finally ended, if life is touched by all of this in equal measure then it has certainly been a life worthy of the stage and of making sure no one forgets his name.

The devoted cast brought the story of Alan Ball completely to the attention of the Epstein audience, even those more attuned to a different type of theatre, one where it is just as much about high drama and passion, and it is a story that works well purely because of the statuesque figure of the man involved.

With wonderful performances from John Purcell as Alan Ball senior, Adam Byrne as the older and managerial Alan Ball and a superb display by Michael Hawkins as the young terrier and Everton captain in their great and golden period, Ball of Fire is a must see for fans of the beautiful game but also those whose hearts run deep in the blood of passion, of sweat and industry. Without Alan Ball the whole story might have been different, without the story, there is no Alan Ball.

Ian D. Hall