alonso14
Established Member
I often ask my Dad, a veteran of the Kop for over 70 years, what it was like to watch football in the 30's, 40's and 50's. A different world he tells me....No shiny stadia, high ticket prices and £4 for a pie!. He always remembers when Liverpool played Everton in the FA Cup in the 50's, we were in the second division with The Blues ruling the Scouse soccer roost. Liverpool won, famously as underdogs, sending the red half of the city into delirium. My Dad said it was like the Coronation all over again.....Street parties and bunting!!
As Liverpool approached the next decade, it did so with a confident swagger.....Post war life, whilst austere, was generally kind to your typical scouser. The ship yards were full, and thriving dock provided the food on the table. As one of the worlds busiest sea ports, Liverpool has always been an outward looking, vibrant and cosmopolitan place, many a sailor has arrived on Scotland Road never to leave, and many a Scouse "Jack" has left never to return.
Yet in the caverns and clubs of urban Liverpool, something extraordinary was happening. Pop culture was being born, where America led with rock n roll, Liverpool gave the world Bealtemania...it changed the city, it changed its people and it changed to world. Nowhere was this more prevalent than with the cities foremost football club. The only club to bear the name of the city, and it's beloved emblem...The Liverbird.
On a cold and damp December morning in 1959 an ex Scottish Wing Half called Bill Shankly walked into the main entrance at Anfield and changed the course of Liverpool's history. He knew what job he had on, when he famously described the place as "a kin to a toilet"! His side including greats such as Ron "The Colossus" Yeats, Ian st John and "Sir" Roger Hunt swept into Division One as Champions and a couple of seasons later were crowned English Champions. Shanks made many a great signing, but the most significant influence was to happen on him.
As Beatlemania swept all before it, the young men that gathered on the sweeping terrace of the Spion Kop would take it to there heart and into there soul. Gathering as early as 12,00 so as to get there favourite "spec", or a place in the infamous boys pen (basically a cage where Fathers would drop there youngsters off, go and watch the match with there mates, only to return at full time, smelling of Higsons pale ale to collect them!). They would pass the time by reciting the popular hits of the day, the latest Beatles or Cilla Black tune. The foreign influence on the city could also be heard, the staccatto, rhythmical clapping of Latin America and southern Europe could be heard in the "Chanting", never heard at a football ground before. If you see footage of the team winning the title at Anfield in the early 60's (vs Arsenal btw!!) you can hear it clearly.."Liverpool...clap clap clap...Liverpool...clap clap clap." This went like wild fire through the rest of English football and is still with us today, but it's inception and birth was in L4....Where Liverpool led, others followed...."Yer got yer education from the Kop" they would sing, smugly.
It was around this time that the Kop adopted its anthem, You'll Never Walk Alone. a No.1 hit for the scouse band Gerry and the Pacemakers, it was taken from the Rogers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. It's tale of strength through adversity and togertheness through the dark times, could be and epitaph to the old, standing Spion Kop. It is sung with the greatest of gusto in times of tragedy of triumph. Anyone who heard the rendition by a lone choir boy in Liverpool Catherdral after the Hillsborough tragedy is testament to that, and it reduces me to tears still. Imagine what the players sat forlorn in the bowels of the Ataturk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul must have felt when 0-3 down and there dream of European glory in tatters, when they heard 40,000 of there own belting out there, our anthem. Then imagine how Milan felt!
A BBC Panorama documentary was made to try to explain this new phenomenon....Indeed the reporter, stood on the pitch in front of the massed ranks of Kopites recalls Napoleons words about his own troops on the eve of battle..."They frighten the life out of me, god knows what they do to my enemy!"
Indeed, many an "enemy" have been vanquished over the years. Some of the greatest nights are often recalled with great gusto by older Kopites, Inter Milan in 1965, days after out first ever FA Cup triumph at Wembley were defeated 3-1 in the European Cup. The injured Gerry Byrne, broken collar bone and all, parading the Cup round the pitch ensuring Internazionale entered the collisseum to a cocophony of noise. They were told in no uncertain terms to "GO BACK TO ITALY". Or St Etienne in 1977, a late David Fairclough goal sending the place into ecstasy and the reds on the way to the glory that was Rome, this 8 year old fledgling kopite being split up from his Dad, and not being reunited until10 minutes AFTER the final whistle!!
Humour has always been prevalent, and the typical scouse wit would come to the fore. Sometimes it could be very cruel, like when the unfortunate Leeds keeper Gary Sprake mishandled the ball into his own net, when en masse the Kop regailed him with a rendition of "Careless Hands"! I am sure Gary laughed, eventually.
Along with humour, a sense of fair play and sportsmanship has always been present too....we always applaud the opposing goalkeeper, in fact two Arsenal stalwarts were always afforded a tremendous reception....David Seaman and Pat Jennings, sometimes getting a better reception than our own stopper!! Indeed Arsenal have witnessed the Kop at it's finest and most generous a few times. In past few days two magnificent Arsenal sides have left the pitch to the applause of the home fans due to the style and manner in which they defeated us. In 1989, in the aftermath of Hillsborough, Arsenal came to Anfield and defeated us 0-2. Before the game Arsenal showed there humility by bringing flowers onto the pitch as a mark of respect for the fallen of Hillsborough. This was not forgotten, in our darkest hour on and off the pitch, Arsenal were afforded a standing ovation by the entire stadium, and especially the Kop as they were presented with the trophy that we thought was ours. Indeed George Graham remarked that it was one of his greatest moments in football, and Michael Thomas was reduced to tears. The Kop also sang "Oh Rocky Rocky.." after the tragic death of the late, great David Rocastle.
And then this brings us to Hillsborough. When 96 brothers and sisters didnt come home on that fateful day in Sheffield, supporters started to gather at Anfield. When the club realised they were not going and more and more were arriving, they opened the turnstiles and let people onto the pitch. During the following days thousand and thousands of people gathered at the Kop end......The terrace became a shrine to the fallen. The flowers that were initially placed at the Kop goal mouth spread until they went over the half way line. A truly heartbreaking sight. I spent several days pounding the old terrace, mourning the death of three good friends and 93 others. I wasn't especially religious. But I knew where I had to be. It became my alter, and my place of prayer.
And so it ended....The economic depression of the 80's and the arrival of Thatcher condenmed Liverpool to the dustbin. Unemployment was rife and attendances dropped to unprecedented level. In one season as Champions were were averaging 32,000. As soon as the flowers were removed and football restarted, so the terraces were demolished. In its place came all seater stadiums, new out of town stadia, high ticket prices, Murdoch and Sky. of course this has been a force of good in many areas. With violence and racism virtually removed from grounds, and fans not being caged like animals, football is now a safer and more family friendly enviroment to watch your team
Yet it has lost part of its soul and it can never be regained.
Sometimes I close my eyes and I am back there, a 7 year old watching Stevie Heighway rampaging down the wing, crossing to the mighty Toshack to head home.....or the 15 year old, now taking his place in the middle of the Kop cheering Kenny and Rushie....Taking his right of passage, out of the boys pen and into the Kop for real...as a man!!
Then I wake up.....and it's still 3-6!!!!!
Alonso14
Any feedback is appreciated..good or bad!
Cheers
As Liverpool approached the next decade, it did so with a confident swagger.....Post war life, whilst austere, was generally kind to your typical scouser. The ship yards were full, and thriving dock provided the food on the table. As one of the worlds busiest sea ports, Liverpool has always been an outward looking, vibrant and cosmopolitan place, many a sailor has arrived on Scotland Road never to leave, and many a Scouse "Jack" has left never to return.
Yet in the caverns and clubs of urban Liverpool, something extraordinary was happening. Pop culture was being born, where America led with rock n roll, Liverpool gave the world Bealtemania...it changed the city, it changed its people and it changed to world. Nowhere was this more prevalent than with the cities foremost football club. The only club to bear the name of the city, and it's beloved emblem...The Liverbird.
On a cold and damp December morning in 1959 an ex Scottish Wing Half called Bill Shankly walked into the main entrance at Anfield and changed the course of Liverpool's history. He knew what job he had on, when he famously described the place as "a kin to a toilet"! His side including greats such as Ron "The Colossus" Yeats, Ian st John and "Sir" Roger Hunt swept into Division One as Champions and a couple of seasons later were crowned English Champions. Shanks made many a great signing, but the most significant influence was to happen on him.
As Beatlemania swept all before it, the young men that gathered on the sweeping terrace of the Spion Kop would take it to there heart and into there soul. Gathering as early as 12,00 so as to get there favourite "spec", or a place in the infamous boys pen (basically a cage where Fathers would drop there youngsters off, go and watch the match with there mates, only to return at full time, smelling of Higsons pale ale to collect them!). They would pass the time by reciting the popular hits of the day, the latest Beatles or Cilla Black tune. The foreign influence on the city could also be heard, the staccatto, rhythmical clapping of Latin America and southern Europe could be heard in the "Chanting", never heard at a football ground before. If you see footage of the team winning the title at Anfield in the early 60's (vs Arsenal btw!!) you can hear it clearly.."Liverpool...clap clap clap...Liverpool...clap clap clap." This went like wild fire through the rest of English football and is still with us today, but it's inception and birth was in L4....Where Liverpool led, others followed...."Yer got yer education from the Kop" they would sing, smugly.
It was around this time that the Kop adopted its anthem, You'll Never Walk Alone. a No.1 hit for the scouse band Gerry and the Pacemakers, it was taken from the Rogers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. It's tale of strength through adversity and togertheness through the dark times, could be and epitaph to the old, standing Spion Kop. It is sung with the greatest of gusto in times of tragedy of triumph. Anyone who heard the rendition by a lone choir boy in Liverpool Catherdral after the Hillsborough tragedy is testament to that, and it reduces me to tears still. Imagine what the players sat forlorn in the bowels of the Ataturk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul must have felt when 0-3 down and there dream of European glory in tatters, when they heard 40,000 of there own belting out there, our anthem. Then imagine how Milan felt!
A BBC Panorama documentary was made to try to explain this new phenomenon....Indeed the reporter, stood on the pitch in front of the massed ranks of Kopites recalls Napoleons words about his own troops on the eve of battle..."They frighten the life out of me, god knows what they do to my enemy!"
Indeed, many an "enemy" have been vanquished over the years. Some of the greatest nights are often recalled with great gusto by older Kopites, Inter Milan in 1965, days after out first ever FA Cup triumph at Wembley were defeated 3-1 in the European Cup. The injured Gerry Byrne, broken collar bone and all, parading the Cup round the pitch ensuring Internazionale entered the collisseum to a cocophony of noise. They were told in no uncertain terms to "GO BACK TO ITALY". Or St Etienne in 1977, a late David Fairclough goal sending the place into ecstasy and the reds on the way to the glory that was Rome, this 8 year old fledgling kopite being split up from his Dad, and not being reunited until10 minutes AFTER the final whistle!!
Humour has always been prevalent, and the typical scouse wit would come to the fore. Sometimes it could be very cruel, like when the unfortunate Leeds keeper Gary Sprake mishandled the ball into his own net, when en masse the Kop regailed him with a rendition of "Careless Hands"! I am sure Gary laughed, eventually.
Along with humour, a sense of fair play and sportsmanship has always been present too....we always applaud the opposing goalkeeper, in fact two Arsenal stalwarts were always afforded a tremendous reception....David Seaman and Pat Jennings, sometimes getting a better reception than our own stopper!! Indeed Arsenal have witnessed the Kop at it's finest and most generous a few times. In past few days two magnificent Arsenal sides have left the pitch to the applause of the home fans due to the style and manner in which they defeated us. In 1989, in the aftermath of Hillsborough, Arsenal came to Anfield and defeated us 0-2. Before the game Arsenal showed there humility by bringing flowers onto the pitch as a mark of respect for the fallen of Hillsborough. This was not forgotten, in our darkest hour on and off the pitch, Arsenal were afforded a standing ovation by the entire stadium, and especially the Kop as they were presented with the trophy that we thought was ours. Indeed George Graham remarked that it was one of his greatest moments in football, and Michael Thomas was reduced to tears. The Kop also sang "Oh Rocky Rocky.." after the tragic death of the late, great David Rocastle.
And then this brings us to Hillsborough. When 96 brothers and sisters didnt come home on that fateful day in Sheffield, supporters started to gather at Anfield. When the club realised they were not going and more and more were arriving, they opened the turnstiles and let people onto the pitch. During the following days thousand and thousands of people gathered at the Kop end......The terrace became a shrine to the fallen. The flowers that were initially placed at the Kop goal mouth spread until they went over the half way line. A truly heartbreaking sight. I spent several days pounding the old terrace, mourning the death of three good friends and 93 others. I wasn't especially religious. But I knew where I had to be. It became my alter, and my place of prayer.
And so it ended....The economic depression of the 80's and the arrival of Thatcher condenmed Liverpool to the dustbin. Unemployment was rife and attendances dropped to unprecedented level. In one season as Champions were were averaging 32,000. As soon as the flowers were removed and football restarted, so the terraces were demolished. In its place came all seater stadiums, new out of town stadia, high ticket prices, Murdoch and Sky. of course this has been a force of good in many areas. With violence and racism virtually removed from grounds, and fans not being caged like animals, football is now a safer and more family friendly enviroment to watch your team
Yet it has lost part of its soul and it can never be regained.
Sometimes I close my eyes and I am back there, a 7 year old watching Stevie Heighway rampaging down the wing, crossing to the mighty Toshack to head home.....or the 15 year old, now taking his place in the middle of the Kop cheering Kenny and Rushie....Taking his right of passage, out of the boys pen and into the Kop for real...as a man!!
Then I wake up.....and it's still 3-6!!!!!
Alonso14
Any feedback is appreciated..good or bad!
Cheers
