http://www.liverpoolfc.comPage Title4242IN OTHER NEWS
The M1 motorway opens (1959); Real
Madrid win their fifth consecutive
European Cup (1960); the first episode
of Coronation Street is screened
(1960); Russia’s Yuri Gagarin becomes
the first man in space (1961); Brazil win
their second World Cup (1962); Please
Please Me is the first no1 for the Beatles
(1963); US President John F Kennedy is
assassinated (1963); an audience of
73 million watch the Beatles on
America’s Ed Sullivan Show (1964);
the Mary Quant miniskirt appears in
London (1965); England win the World
Cup (1966); Celtic become the first
British club to win the European Cup
(1967); Jürgen Klopp is born (1967).were closed at 1.45pm with a capacity crowd inside. Scenes outside
had been bordering on chaos with mounted police busy controlling the
crowds, reinforced by special constabulary.
“From 1.45pm onwards the ground was tightly packed with an exultant
crowd waiting for the kick-of. ‘They are just singing their heads of
- they love it’, said an oicial.”
An Echo cartoon features skipper Ron Yeats on a steamroller, an
‘Anield sparrow’, team mascot ‘Master McCann’, ‘the chap who
climbed into the joist of the Kop roof’ and ‘the Kop Choirmaster’.
Strikers Hunt and St John score over 50 league goals between
them and there are three 1963/64 ever-presents (42 appearances
each): Ian Callaghan, Gordon Milne and Peter Thompson.
Season 1964/65: Liverpool reach the FA Cup inal for a third
time in their history – will this be the year the Reds inally bring the
trophy home?
Daily Post writer Horace Yates thinks so: “The preliminaries are
over, seconds are out and the bell is about to sound. Wembley
1965 is ready to stage the greatest battle of the Roses for many a
long year, and at the end of today’s Cup Final, Liverpool or Leeds
will be entitled to enter with pride on their roll of honour, Cup
winners for the irst time in their history...
“A tremendous battle then and a victory procession for Liverpool
through the streets of the city on Sunday evening. Ee Aye Addio –
we will win the Cup!”
And they do, beating Leeds 2-1 at Wembley. The next day,
Sunday 2 May 1965, the Reds bring the trophy back for the irst
time and the scenes in the city have to be seen to be believed.
The Echo reports: “Skipper Ron Yeats and the team were greeted
by roars of ‘Liverpool! Liverpool! Liverpool!’ from 50,000 throats in
the vicinity of Lime Street station, and St George’s Plateau was a solid
mass of people. One senior police oicer said: ‘This makes the Beatles
reception look like a vicarage tea party!’”
Two days later on a tide of Anield emotion Liverpool beat Inter Milan
3-1 in the irst leg of their European Cup semi-inal, but the Italian
champions controversially progress 4-3 on aggregate.
Season 1965/66: champions! Liverpool clinched their seventh title
with a 2-1 win over Chelsea at Anield on 30 April 1966, inishing six
points clear of runners-up Leeds.
Roger Hunt gets the goals, bringing his total to 32 – the sixth of nine
seasons in which he’d be top scorer. But the fans are the stars for the
Daily Post: “Bill Shankly is right. There’s no football crowd anywhere to
compare with the Anield throng for their fervour and spontaneous wit.
Entirely original, they are not so much part of a scene as scene-stealers...
“The team’s lap of honour produced a frenzied salute and I don’t think
I have ever seen a more colourful spectacle than when they slowed
their pace in front of the Kop.”
In the European Cup-Winners Cup the Reds beat Celtic in the semis
but lose to Borussia Dortmund in the Glasgow inal. Naturally Shanks
feels that the best team lost...