The VERY different lives of the Rooney brothers: Wayne, unlikely FA Cup hero John and Graham were all in Everton’s academy before varying careers and a string of controversies

Macclesfield’s elimination of Crystal Palace from the FA Cup was, in many ways, a cathartic moment for the youngest brother of Wayne Rooney, John.

The 35-year-old grew up largely in the shadow of his older brother, who has dominated sporting headlines since bursting onto the scene at 16 as one of the nation’s most exciting and prolific players.

Wayne remains England’s youngest-ever goalscorer and has lived much of his life under the spotlight – collecting the game’s biggest trophies, navigating a high-profile relationship with his childhood sweetheart, experiencing the highs and lows of football management, and now carving out a reputation as a seasoned pundit.

For John, the path to prominence has been very different. While he, Wayne, and their middle brother Graham have all experienced scrutiny – famously taking Ibiza by storm during Wayne’s stag do, attending festivals together, and even facing similar drink-driving controversies – the younger Rooneys have largely remained under the radar.

Now, however, John’s name is known far beyond Macclesfield. Just six months into his tenure as head coach, he is fresh from leading a side ranked 117 places below Crystal Palace to pull off the biggest upset in FA Cup history.

Football has always been in the Rooney blood. John grew up playing with the former Manchester United and England captain and Graham, outside – and often inside – the family home in Croxteth.

‘Just constantly football,’ John told Daily Mail Sport’s Chris Wheeler last week. ‘We’d make a ball out of anything, even if it was a pair of socks in the living room. TVs, pictures, everything got broken. We put a ball through the front window.

‘We’d be on the street playing, using lampposts as goals. We had a nursery across from us, and used to climb over and play in there.

‘My uncle has had his own boxing gym for 40-odd years now, and we’d throw the gloves on and fight with each other. Wayne’s the oldest so we’d make me and Graham fight. He had to take it easy on me, otherwise if he ended up giving me a smack then Wayne would give him one too. But that’s brothers.’

John attended Our Lady and St Swithin’s Primary School and De La Salle Humanities College in Croxteth. Like his two brothers, he also came through Everton’s academy before veering off to begin his career at Macclesfield as a teenager. A journeyman, John played for 11 clubs during his professional career, including a stint in the USA with New York Red Bulls and Orlando City.

He moved back to England in 2012 with Barnsley and later joined Bury – at a time when brother Wayne was the captain of United.

In a 2014 interview with The Express, John said: ‘I’m proud of him, not envious of him. That’s because he’s part of my family. If anyone in my family does well, then I am proud of them too. He’s out there. He’s captain of Manchester United and England.

‘Hopefully he can go on and break the all time goalscoring record for his country. He’s had a brilliant career and I’m pleased for him.’

As for being Wayne’s younger brother while trying to forge his own career in the sport, John added: ‘People are obviously going to bring Wayne up but I’ve got my own career. I’ve got to put myself first.’

The trio have largely stayed out of the spotlight as a family since their partying days in Liverpool in the early 2000s and 2010s.

Little is known about what Graham is doing these days. Like his siblings, he began a football career at the Toffees’ academy and was often seen out on the town with his family, even attending Glastonbury Festival with them over the years. 

An amateur footballer at one point, Graham’s public presence has been minimal since a 2019 video went viral showing him with his arm around Tommy Robinson – a moment Wayne described as leaving him ‘disappointed’. Graham also faced a two-year driving ban in 2013 after being caught drunk behind the wheel.

A few years later, Wayne himself received a two-year ban after pleading guilty to drink driving. The incident occurred during a night out while his pregnant wife and their three sons were on holiday. He was stopped by police at 2am in Cheshire while driving a woman’s black Volkswagen Beetle, with the woman in the passenger seat.

Wayne recently opened up about his relationship with alcohol on former Manchester United team-mate Rio Ferdinand’s podcast, Rio Ferdinand Presents. He described how, in his early years, all he wanted to do was go out and ‘enjoy my time with friends’, but said it got to a point ‘where I went too far’.

Wayne recalled one incident where he ‘drank for two days straight’ before turning up for football training. ‘Come training and at the weekend I’d scored two goals and then I’d go back and go and drink for two days straight again,’ he said.

He also praised the influence of his wife Coleen, who stuck by his side amid their highly documented marital struggles, saying: ‘I honestly believe if she weren’t there I’d be dead.’

For all of Wayne’s personal battles being played out in public – and to some extent Graham’s – John’s journey was unfolding far more quietly. Back in England, John bounced around the National League with Wrexham, Guiseley, Barrow, Stockport City and Oldham Athletic.

And that brings us to the here and now, and John’s move to Macclesfield in 2023, initially as a player before stepping into the dugout when former boss Robbie Savage left for Forest Green Rovers in July.

His comments when taking the job revealed a desire to stay under the radar – perhaps shaped by watching his brother’s life under relentless media attention.

‘When do these opportunities come up to be a manager of a club like this? Not often,’ Rooney told The Guardian in July. ‘I spoke about it last year with Sav (Savage), that if he ever left, would I be interested? I always said I’d want to throw myself right at it.

‘I’ll be different to Sav. He has always been out there as a player and a pundit. He likes attention – not in a bad sense. I’ll go under the radar and be my own person. I’d be stupid to act like Sav, because I’m a different person and I’d be being false.’

There are also challenges that no manager can prepare for. Macclesfield’s 21-year-old forward Ethan McLeod tragically died in a car crash on the M1 before Christmas while travelling back from a game at Bedford Town.

‘We spoke about Ethan being here with us,’ John said after Saturday’s victory. ‘I didn’t want to say too much to the lads before the game because I didn’t want to put any extra pressure on them.

‘When we finished the game, I walked into the office and saw Ethan’s mum and dad in there, and that was very special to me knowing they were here with us. It’s something I’ll hold me forever, and I’m sure Ethan was definitely looking down on us today.

‘I don’t think many people have been put in that situation before and, for me, in my first couple of months in the job. I brought Ethan to the club and I had a special relationship with him, so to find out that news and have to phone the players individually and give them the news was something that you can’t prepare for.

‘It’s the hardest thing I’ll ever have to do and how I did it I don’t know. It ripped through the club, me, the staff, the players. Ethan was a special lad and a special talent.’

Macclesfield fans stormed the pitch in a frenzy of euphoria at the final whistle. And it was an emotional moment for Wayne, too, who fought back tears as a pundit on the BBC as he described his pride at his youngest brother’s achievement.

In the end, it was not just an upset for the history books, but a triumphant moment for a Rooney who has long opted to let his work, rather than his name, do the talking.