Shankly’s Swansong with Tosh
BILL SHANKLY had a message for his Liverpool players whenever they felt under pressure.
“Pressure? Pressure is when you don’t have a job, when you have to stand in a line and wait for your money,” he would say.
“These are the best days of your lives.”
Shankly’s wisdom is remembered by John Toshack in documentary TOSH, which reveals the Liverpool legend’s role in a great football fairytale.
Even his own players did not believe Toshack when he told them he would turn Swansea into a top-flight team in three years after he took over as player/ manager at Vetch Field in March 1978. But he kept his promise. TOSH uses interviews with players and fans, archive footage and unseen images to relive the excitement as crowds would swell from 2,000 to 25,000 and Toshack, a winner of three titles, the FA Cup and European Cup at Anfield, enjoyed an
incredible twilight to his career.
“What Shanks drummed into us was, ‘You are the best boys,’” said Toshack, of his mentor. “And we believed him.” Shankly also preached a football socialism where everyone pulled together and Toshack built the same togetherness.
The great Reds boss was in the dressing room at Preston before the final game of the 1980-81 season when victory meant promotion to the top flight, shaking each player by the hand and telling them: “You’re ready.”
They were. Toshack’s team ran out 3-1 winners.
Shankly described Toshack as “the manager of the century” – and the adventure didn’t end there.
Swansea topped the First Division table in April 1982 before losing five of six games to be pipped to the title by Liverpool, who had earlier suffered the death of Shankly.