 Eastham was part of a footballing family – his father, George Eastham Sr., was an England international who played for Bolton Wanderers and Blackpool, while his uncle Harry Eastham played for Liverpool and Accrington Stanley.In his youth he was a useful cricketer, playing in the same Blackpool CC team as his future fellow international, Jimmy Armfield.Eastham junior first played for Northern Irish club Ards, where his father was player-manager, and the two played together on the pitch.