IAN WAS AN IDOL, THOSE BOYS BUILT MODERN REDS

IAN St JOHN gave me my greatest memory as a Liverpool fan. I can still see him diving forward on the six-yard box to angle his header into the Wembley net, clinching the 1965 FA Cup final against Leeds United. It was the first time Liverpool had won the Cup and I’ll be eternally grateful to Saint. That moment signified Liverpool’s change. We had won the title the year before, the club had history, but winning the Cup for the first time was magical. Bill Shankly talked of building a bastion of invincibility, that win gave everyone belief. Players such as Saint were the cornerstone on which Liverpool was built. What Shanks always said he wanted from fans, he expected players to give as well: loyalty, commitment and trust. Ian St John had them in abundance. He was like a Scottish Luis Suarez. He would jump into people, he would fight, he’d be a nark, he’d moan. But we loved him for it. He was what every fan wanted, trying his damnedest for your team. You’d expect toughness from Ron Yeats or Tommy Smith but Saint used to terrorise defenders and it was something we hadn’t seen.

Fantastic in the air for his height, he formed a great partnership with Roger Hunt. The two of them were my idols. It was a wonderful time. The Kop was in full swing, the Beatles were at their height and Scouse humour was all the rage. Liverpool was the place to be. When I started as an apprentice in 1970, Saint was being phased out as Shanks looked to build his next team but he was still one of the loudest voices in the camp. He was probably a little angry at the transition because he felt he had more to give. He was playing for the reserves when I made my debut for them against Sheffield Wednesday at Anfield. I was in awe being in the same team but he never stopped moaning throughout the game. Anyway, 15 minutes from the end, the referee had had enough and called him over. ‘What’s your name?’ asked the ref. I couldn’t believe it. ‘What’s his name?’ I shouted. ‘He’s Ian St John. Don’t you know who he is?’ I was incredulous. The ref just raised his eyebrows at me, he had to say it that way for procedure. It’s a shame Saint and others were phased out so quickly. Kids like me knew our place around them. It only took a couple of words from him or the likes of Ian Callaghan, whose boots I cleaned for half a crown. Those guys gave you a great grounding. They were a special side.

They were an incredibly close bunch and it’s no wonder Saint campaigned so strongly for them when several of that side succumbed to dementia. Their reunions were never ‘let’s get together for the sake of it’ — and it was an important message they relayed to generations of other Liverpool players. Those magical moments you can’t get back, they grew old together and knew the times they shared were so precious. For all I achieved in my Liverpool career — European Cups, titles — I never felt it compared to what those boys achieved. I will forever behold them as the players on which the modern Liverpool was built.