to every coin, two sides
to every story.
19. AFTER THE WAR, BEFORE THE WAR
The 1964–65 season had been a long season. The longest season in the history of Liverpool Football Club. A hard season and a tiring season. A season of ups and a season of downs. In the 1964–65 season, Liverpool Football Club had finished seventh in the First Division. But Liverpool Football Club had reached the semi-finals of the European Cup and Liverpool Football Club had won the FA Cup. For the first time in the history of Liverpool Football Club. It had been a long season. But it had been a good season. And it should have been a happy season. But no one was happy.
In the summer of 1965, at the start of the pre-season training. The players of Liverpool Football Club were not happy. The players of Liverpool Football Club had complaints. The players of Liverpool Football Club had grievances.
The directors of Liverpool Football Club had promised every player of Liverpool Football Club a bonus of one thousand pounds if Liverpool Football Club won the FA Cup. The players of Liverpool Football Club had won the FA Cup. The players of Liverpool Football Club expected to each receive their bonus of one thousand pounds, plus their basic wage of thirty-five pounds, less tax. The players of Liverpool Football Club also expected to receive a crowd bonus. Home or away, the players of Liverpool Football Club always received a crowd bonus. One hundred thousand folk had come to Wembley Stadium on Saturday 1 May, 1965. One hundred thousand folk had seen Liverpool Football Club win the FA Cup. And so the players of Liverpool Football Club expected to receive a crowd bonus. Plus their one thousand pounds for winning the Cup, plus their basic wage, less tax. The directors of Liverpool Football Club paid the players of Liverpool Football Club their bonus for winning the FA Cup, plus their basic wage, less tax. But the directors of Liverpool Football Club said Wembley Stadium was neither home nor away. The directors of Liverpool Football Club said Wembley Stadium was a neutral ground. The directors of Liverpool Football Club refused to pay the players of Liverpool Football Club a crowd bonus. And so the players of Liverpool Football Club were not happy. The players of Liverpool Football Club had complaints. The players of Liverpool Football Club had grievances. Complaints about their wage structure, grievances about their salaries. The players of Liverpool Football Club knew their wages were amongst the lowest in the First Division. The players of Liverpool Football Club contacted the secretary of the Players’ Association. The secretary of the Players’ Association came to Anfield, Liverpool, to assist the players of Liverpool Football Club in their negotiations with the directors of Liverpool Football Club. The secretary of the Players’ Association told the local press, the Liverpool press, I deny as emphatically as possible the rumour being put about that the players of Liverpool Football Club are seeking a basic wage of one hundred pounds a week. Their basic wage, far from being in three figures, has not even been half that sum.
Bill Shankly nodded. But Bill Shankly was not happy. Bill Shankly didn’t like money. He didn’t want to talk about money, he didn’t even like to think about money. Bill Shankly knew you needed a roof over your head. A decent roof. Food on your table and clothes on your back. Decent food and decent clothes. For you and for your family. Bill Shankly believed the wages from your work should provide you with a roof. With food and with clothes. A decent roof. Decent food and decent clothes. For you and for your family. But Bill Shankly believed you had to earn your wage. You had to earn that roof over your head. The food on your table and the clothes on your back. That then you would cherish that roof. That food and those clothes. Because you had earned that roof. That food, those clothes. Bill Shankly believed anything else, anything more, was a luxury. Bill Shankly believed a luxury was something you had not earned. Something you had not worked for. Bill Shankly knew such luxuries were also a distraction. A distraction from your work. Bill Shankly didn’t like distractions. He didn’t want to talk about distractions, he didn’t want to even think about distractions –
It would be a pity if differences of this sort were to create unease where no uneasiness has existed in the past, said Bill Shankly. And if these differences, if this unease, were to create distractions. Distractions from our work.
…
On Saturday 14 August, 1965, Liverpool Football Club travelled to Old Trafford, Manchester. That afternoon, forty-eight thousand, five hundred and two folk came, too. Manchester folk and Liverpool folk. Forty-eight thousand, five hundred and two folk to watch the winners of the Football League play the winners of the FA Cup for the Charity Shield. There were floating banners in the stands, boisterous chorales to the roofs of the stands. In the thirty-eighth minute, Willie Stevenson scored. In the eighty-sixth minute, Ron Yeats scored. But Herd had scored, too. And Best had scored, too. And the Charity Shield was shared between the winners of the Football League and the winners of the FA Cup. And thirteen thousand pounds was raised for charity. Charity.
That Saturday morning, before the match, the directors of Liverpool Football Club had announced that all the players of Liverpool Football Club had signed new contracts for the coming season. That the players of Liverpool Football Club had no more complaints, the players of Liverpool Football Club had no more grievances. That the players of Liverpool Football Club were happy. And Bill Shankly was happy –
I would like to pay tribute to the chairman, the president and the board of Liverpool Football Club, said Bill Shankly. They have given the players of Liverpool Football Club one of the finest deals I have ever known in the game. One of the best deals in the game. And so now everybody is happy. There are no more differences, there is no more unease. And no more distractions. Only work now. Only work!
…
On Saturday 21 August, 1965, Liverpool Football Club travelled to Filbert Street, Leicester, for their first League game of the 1965–66 season. In the thirty-fifth minute, Roger Hunt scored. In the fifty-third minute, Geoff Strong scored. And in the eightieth minute, Hunt scored again. And Liverpool Football Club beat Leicester City three — one. Away from home, away from Anfield. It was a good start. But only a start. Four days later, Sheffield United came to Anfield, Liverpool. That evening, forty-seven thousand, two hundred and fifty-nine folk came, too. But Liverpool Football Club lost one — nil. At home, at Anfield, in their first home game of the 1965–66 season. One week later, Liverpool Football Club travelled to Bramall Lane, Sheffield. And Liverpool Football Club drew nil — nil with Sheffield United. Liverpool Football Club then beat Blackpool Football Club away, Liverpool Football Club then beat West Ham United five — one away. And Liverpool Football Club then beat Fulham Football Club. At home, at Anfield. Liverpool Football Club then drew one-all with West Ham United. Three days later, Liverpool Football Club travelled to White Hart Lane, London. And Liverpool Football Club lost two — one to Tottenham Hotspur. That evening, Liverpool Football Club had played eight games. They had won four games, they had drawn two games. And they had lost two games. That evening, Liverpool Football Club had nine points. That evening, Liverpool Football Club were eighth in the First Division. It was not a good start, it was not a bad start. It was just a start. Just the start.