Even for such important 1960s
players such as Roger Hunt, Ian St. John and Ron Yeats, their impact on Liverpool can be summarised in a few paragraphs capturing their key
stats and achievements https://sportyman2020.blogspot.com/2020/11/liverpool-fc-in-1960s-part-2-of-3.html
But for Bill Shankly, his
impact and legacy feels too important to be summarised in just one section. So
as you can see, Shankly pops up in many different parts of the Sportyman
history of Liverpool FC.
Stephen F. Kelly’s biography
of Shankly gives great insights into the nature of the man. Prior to arriving
at Liverpool, he had had a relatively unremarkable playing career (his only
major honour being the 1938 FA Cup win with Preston North End) and his
managerial career to date (Carlisle United, Grimsby Town, Workington and
Huddersfield Town) had hardly set him out as being a world beater.
After a week of managing and training at club level, Shankly would spend Sunday afternoons playing football with local fathers and sons, giving an insight into his love for the game and his connection with his community.
But despite his lack of
winning pedigree to date, Shankly had an irrepressible positivity and charisma
that meant he was destined (in Heraclitean terms, by virtue of his character)
for success.
Beyond those abstract
concepts of vision, energy and charisma, Shankly’s success was based on a few
key principle building blocks.
Firstly, despite the close
and paternal bond that he had with his players, Shankly also had a ruthlessness
that was sometimes bordering on excessive. This ruthlessness was most evident
in his first year or two at the club, when he got rid of 24 players, including
an ageing Billy Liddell. And when his great 1960s team was starting to age and
slow down, Shankly had no hesitation in taking it apart and building a new team
again. The negative side to his ruthlessness came in relation to injuries: he
actively ignored and sometimes even disparaged players who were injured,
perhaps most famously Peter Thompson in the last phase of a stellar career with
the club.
Secondly, Shankly had a
clear vision for how his teams should be set up and play, and a clear vision
for what players he needed. This was most evident when building his first Liverpool team and in his acquisition of Ian St.
John and Ron Yeats, players he had pursued unsuccessfully in his days managing
Huddersfield Town. Shankly also maximized the potential of his player
acquisitions, bringing in innovative training techniques and using
strategy and tactics in a time when such concepts were still treated with a
degree of scepticism in the English game. Considering the very basic facilities at his disposal at the Melwood training ground during his tenure, Shankly would surely marvel at Liverpool's new training set-up in the AXA Training Centre in Kirby https://www.thisisanfield.com/2020/10/liverpool-fc-to-move-to-new-training-ground-in-november/
Finally, Shankly had an old fashioned socialist philosophy that was based on toil, teamwork and a sense of common purpose and unity, among the team and between the team and the fans. He repeatedly reminded his players that they were playing for the people of Liverpool and that they should thus feel privileged. Having escaped a life working in the coalmines in his native Scotland and having survived World War II, Shankly saw his involvement in professional football as being both a pleasure and a deep privilege.
After lifting Liverpool out of the Second Division and leading them to glory in the 1960s, Shankly's next big task was to take apart an ageing team at the end of the 1960s and build a new team for the next decade. This was arguably as big a challenge as his first challenges when he arrived at the club in 1959. As always, he would approach his task with energy and positivity and, as always, his hard work and vision would lead to more success.
Next week: Liverpool in the 1970s, success in Europe for the first time, and Shankly's shock retirement.
But finally, in a month when we lost both Ray Clemence and Diego Maradona, I would like to include a clip featuring the Liverpool goalkeeping hero who came before Clemence, Tommy Lawrence. Lawrence was Liverpool's number 1 for most of Bill Shankly's reign, playing 306 times between 1957 and 1971. Thanks for the clip goes to my lifelong friend and Spurs fan Brendan Conroy who, despite his Spurs allegiance, is an enthusiastic reader of the Sportyman blog.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0U_PUbQGA4U
Tommy Lawrence (1940-2018) and, over his shoulder, his successor Ray Clemence (1948-2020) - two of Liverpool's greatest ever goalkeepers
And finally this week...
Liverpool FC in the 1960s: a decade in summary
Note:
top scorer is based on combined goals in all competitions
1960-1961
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Dick White
Top goalscorer: Kevin Lewis
(22)
League: 3rd in
Second Division (Second Division winners: Ipswich Town. Tottenham Hotspur won
First Division for the second time)
FA Cup: 4th round
(winners: Tottenham Hotspur, their third win)
League Cup: 3rd
round (winners: Aston Villa, their first win)
European competitions: Not
eligible (Benefica won the European Cup for the first time and Fiorentina won
the Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time).
1961-1962
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(42)
League: Won Second Division
and promoted. Ipswich Town won the First Division, their first win.
FA Cup: 5th round
(winners: Tottenham Hotspur, their 4th win)
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: Norwich City, their 1st win)
Europe: Not eligible.
Benefica won the European Cup for the second time and Atletico Madrid won the
Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time).
1962-1963
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(26)
League: 8th in
First Division (winners: Everton, their 6th win)
FA Cup: Semi-final (winners:
Manchester United, their 3rd win)
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: Birmingham City, their first win)
Europe: Not eligible. AC
Milan won European Cup for the first time, Tottenham Hotspur won the Cup
Winners’ Cup for the first time.
1963-1964
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(33)
League: Division 1 champions
for the 6th time
FA Cup: quarter final
(winners: West Ham United, their first title)
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: Leicester City, their first win)
Europe: Not eligible. Inter
Milan won European Cup for the first time. Sporting won the Cup Winners' Cup
for the first time.
1964-1965
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(37)
League: 7th in
Division 1 (winners: Manchester United, their 6th win)
FA Cup: Champions for the
first time
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: Chelsea, their first win)
European Cup: semi-final.
Inter Milan won the European Cup for the second time. West Ham United won the
Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time.
1965-1966
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(33)
League: First Division
champions for the 7th time
FA Cup: 3rd round
(winners: Everton, their 3rd win)
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: West Bromwich Albion, their first win)
Europe: Cup Winner’s Cup
runners up (winners: Borussia Dortmund). Real Madrid won the European Cup for
the 6th time.
1966-1967
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(19)
League: 5th in
Division 1 (winners: Manchester United, their 7th win)
FA Cup: 5th round
(winners: Tottenham Hotspur, their 5th win)
League Cup: did not enter
(winners: Queens Park Rangers, their first win)
Europe: European Cup, 2nd
round (winners: Celtic, their first win). Bayern Munich won the Cup Winner’s
Cup final for the first time.
1967-1968
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(30)
League: 3rd in
Division 1 (winners: Manchester City, their second win)
FA Cup: quarter final
(winners: West Bromwich Albion, their 5th win)
League Cup: 2nd
round (winners: Leeds United, their first win)
Europe: Inter-Cities Fairs
Cup, 3rd round. Manchester United won the European Cup for the first
time. AC Milan won the Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time.
1968-1969
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Roger Hunt
(17)
League: 2nd in
Division 1 (winners: Leeds United, their first win)
FA Cup: 5th round
(winners: Manchester City, their 5th win)
League Cup: 4th
round (winners: Swindon Town, their first win)
Europe: Inter-Cities Fairs
Cup, 1st round. AC Milan won the European Cup for the second time.
Slovan Bratislava won the Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time.
1969-1970
Manager: Bill Shankly
Captain: Ron Yeats
Top goalscorer: Bobby Graham
(21)
League: 5th in
Division 1 (winners: Everton, their 5th win)
FA Cup: Quarter final
(winners: Chelsea, their first win)
League Cup: 3rd
round (winners: Manchester City, their first win)
Other: Inter-Cities Fairs
Cup, 2nd round. Feyenoord won European Cup for first time.
Manchester City won Cup Winners’ Cup for the first time.
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