The making of the £60K bargain who became an Everton legend

Seamus Coleman has been at Everton for 16 years after signing from Sligo Rovers for £60,000

"Sixty grand, sixty grand Seamus Coleman, playing football the Everton way."

It's a song that has echoed around the terraces at Goodison Park - and later Hill Dickinson Stadium - for 17 years.

After 433 matches in blue, Seamus Coleman's famous £60,000 transfer fee from Sligo Rovers works out at about £140 a game.

The Republic of Ireland full-back's long Toffees career will soon come to a close after he confirmed he will leave when his contract expires this summer.

It's one of the biggest bargains in Premier League history, but it wasn't always a straightforward success story.

From street football, proving people wrong and a ham and cheese jambon, this is how Coleman wrote his name into Everton folklore.

Coleman to end 17-year Everton playing career

Killybegs is a small fishing town in County Donegal nestled along the picturesque, rural Irish coastline - dubbed Wild Atlantic Way - with a population of about 1,250 people.

It's also where a young Seamus Coleman developed his skills on the streets of his estate.

Brian Dorrian, who would help shape Coleman's football journey, says it is a place where "everyone knows everybody".

"Early life for a lot of the young lads, including Seamus, would have been school and football. They played everywhere."

Killybegs was dominated by two sports - football, or soccer as it's often known in the north west, and Gaelic football, which is Ireland's traditional national sport.

Coleman, like the majority of youngsters, played both. There were transferable skills, with youngsters learning the sports in robust fashion, with matches taking place between various estates in the town.

"You didn't get beat in those, it was like going to war with your neighbours," Dorrian added.

"That is where he learned his traits. Playing against older players, getting kicked. It built hunger and the drive to do well."

Coleman with kids from Killybegs before Everton's friendly with Sligo Rovers in 2024

Coleman started playing football for St Catherine's, just around the corner from home, and Dorrian, who was the club's first-team manager, remembers he was "small, tenacious and had a big heart".

His size counted against him, and led to him being left out of county and school squads. But his determination was something else.

"At an early age, he had potential but he hadn't any more than any of the rest of them," Dorrian added.

"But he had that bit about him. Not the technical side so much, but the mentality and that was bred from where he is from.

"You don't want to get beaten by anyone. If it's instilled in you from a young age, with a bit of respect and a bit of manners, it helps guide you through your career - whatever path it takes you."

Less than 24 hours after a man-of-the-match performance against Arsenal in 2023, Coleman was back with Brian Dorrian at St Catherine's for a recovery session

To make it in any professional sport, a slice of luck - in addition to work ethic and natural ability - is often required.

Coleman was no different, and there were three key cards that fell his way.