Screen Sport Super Cup 1985-86

After the Heysel Stadium disaster English clubs were banned from competing in European competitions indefinitely from season 1985-86.  The financial implications for the six clubs who had earned qualification from the previous season were potentially disastrous.  English football was going through a difficult time with reduced attendances and more coverage on the front pages than the authorities would prefer.

The end of the 1985-86 season had not been a happy one.  56 fans died in a fire at Bradford City’s Valley Parade stadium and then at the European Cup Final in Brussels, 39 Juventus fans lost their lives when a wall collapsed after a charge by Liverpool supporters.  This was the final straw for UEFA and they took immediate action.  English clubs were banned from European competition until such time as it was considered they had rid themselves of “the English disease” or violence at football matches.  Yet even after that Liverpool would suffer a further three year ban as punishment.

The Football League was keen to come up with a substitute competition for the clubs concerned and so they conceived the idea of a Super Cup.  The six clubs were split into two groups with each side playing the other two clubs in their group twice.  The top two in each group would then meet in a Semi-Final and Final stage played over two legs.  The winners would have to negotiate eight matches to be successful.

The intention was to hold the competition annually for the duration of the ban (which ultimately existed for five years) but the games were poorly attended and the competition just didn’t quite do it when compared to the glamour of European tournaments.  To make things worse some of the clubs themselves hardly managed to drum up interest in it and so it would remain a one-off cup.

Perhaps the fact a sponsor was yet to be found right up to kick-off didn’t help.  In the end a cable TV channel, ScreenSport, came to the rescue.  It had been launched in 1984 and was bought by WH Smith in 1987 and then later by Eurosport before its demise in 1993.

Another hurdle to get over was the clubs were in dispute with BBC and ITV over money and so there was no football on telly until the New Year.  At the time there was real concern television would reduce gates, with many in power believing people would just stay at home and watch rather than make their way to the grounds.  This meant the brand new competition got off to the worst possible start as people couldn’t watch it on TV.

For the rest of the First and Second Division clubs, the Football League devised their own competition and called it The Full Members Cup. 

As if all this turmoil wasn’t enough, behind the scenes there was talk of a breakaway league and by December 1985 plans were in place to reduce the First Division in size and introduce play-offs.  Fortunately, a new TV deal was agreed.  It seems madness today to think back to a TV deal which included nine First Division and League Cup games from January with a separate deal for the FA Cup and two further live matches, England v Scotland and the European Cup Final.  For many supporters now they are used to seeing at least three live games every weekend, but back then football just didn’t trust or understand television and so we had the situation of no football to watch at all for the first six months of the season.

The six clubs to participate in the competition were, Everton (League Champions), Manchester United (FA Cup winners), Norwich City (League Cup winners), and then the three clubs who had qualified for the UEFA Cup, Liverpool, Tottenham and Southampton.  The two groups were drawn and consisted of Liverpool, Tottenham and Southampton in Group One, and Everton, Norwich City and Manchester United in Group Two.  There were rumours the two biggest clubs in the country at the time, Liverpool and Everton, were kept apart in the draw in a bid to give the competition some credence and try to keep the interest through to the final.

The competition kicked off on 17^th September at Anfield where Liverpool took on Southampton.   Their League form couldn’t have been more different.  Southampton were yet to win away and Liverpool had won every home match.  All the goals came in the first half as Jan Molby gave the home side an early lead, with Danny Wallace equalising mid-way through, only for Kenny Dalglish to put Liverpool back in front almost immediately.  A good win for Liverpool but concern for the organisers as fewer than 17,000 turned out to watch.

The next night Manchester United took on Everton at Old Trafford.  United had started the season off with a bang, having won every one of their eight League matches and were eight points ahead of Everton in 2^nd.  Everton lead at the break after Kevin Sheedy and Gary Lineker scored to cancel out Bryan Robson’s penalty.  Sheedy scored again in the second period with Graeme Sharp adding a fourth.  Frank Stapleton’s goal was merely a consolation and United had lost their 100% record in all competitions, although if you include their Charity Shield defeat to Everton then it was their second defeat.  Just under 34,000 turned up for the game and although that was more than at Anfield, it was still down on the regular 50,000+ who had been watching the League games at Old Trafford.  In his programme notes, United Chairman, Martin Edwards, said he hoped the Super Cup would only last for one season as he hoped the ban on English clubs would only last that long.  He got his wish in the end, but only the bit about the shelf-life of the competition rather than the ban.

17^th September 1985, Anfield, 16,189

GROUP ONE

LIVERPOOL   (2)   2   (Molby, Dalglish)

SOUTHAMPTON   (1)   1   (Wallace)

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Nicol, Lawrenson, Hansen, Beglin; Johnston, Lee, Molby, McMahon; Walsh, Dalglish

Southampton: Shilton; Golac, Bond, Wright, Dennis; Curtis (Lawrence), Townsend, Whitlock, Armstrong; Wallace, Jordan

18^th September 1985, Old Trafford, 33,859

GROUP TWO

MANCHESTER UNITED   (1)   2   (Robson pen, Stapleton)

EVERTON   (2)   4   (Sheedy 2, Lineker, Sharp)

Man Utd:Bailey; Duxbury, McGrath, Moran, Albiston; Strachan, Robson, Whiteside, Barnes; Hughes, Stapleton

Everton: Southall; Stevens, Ratcliffe, Marshall, Van den Hauwe; Steven, Harper, Bracewell, Sheedy; Lineker (Heath), Sharp

At the beginning of October barely 10,000 could be bothered to get to Goodison Park to see Gary Lineker score the only goal of the game as Everton beat Second Division Norwich City to virtually confirm their passage to the next stage.  The vibe around Goodison was so poor that Everton manager, Howard Kendall, later admitted his team talk consisted of the following phrase “what a waste of time this is – out you go”.

At White Hart Lane two first half goals from Mark Falco were enough to see off Southampton despite Steve Moran’s reply in the second period.  Southampton were lying in the relegation zone in the League and their participation in this competition was now in doubt with a second defeat.

2^nd October 1985, White Hart Lane, 11,549

GROUP ONE

TOTTENHAM   (2)   2   (Falco 2)

SOUTHAMPTON   (0)   1   (Moran)

Tottenham: Clemence; Thomas, Perryman, Roberts, Hughton; P Allen, Hoddle, Ardiles (Mabbutt), Waddle; Falco, C Allen (Chiedozie)

Southampton: Shilton; Baker, Wright, Bond, Armstrong; Case, Townsend, Curtis; Wallace (Lawrence), Jordan, Moran

Goodison Park, 10,329

GROUP TWO

EVERTON   (0)   1   (Lineker)

NORWICH CITY   (0)   0

Everton: Southall; Stevens, Ratcliffe, Marshall, Van den Hauwe; Steven, Harper, Bracewell, Sheedy; Lineker, Sharp

Norwich: Woods; Haylock, Bruce, Spearing, Phelan; Barham (Brooke), Mendham, Williams, van Wyk; Drinkell, Rosario

By the time Liverpool visited Southampton for their return fixture they had moved into second place in the League, still ten points behind the leaders Manchester United.  Southampton had moved up a couple of places themselves and put up a better fight than at Anfield as David Armstrong’s goal was cancelled out by a late Paul Walsh goal and the points were shared.  The next night at Carrow Road, Norwich City pulled off a shock as Peter Mendham’s goal beat the League Champions, Everton.  The attendance for this game was only slightly down on their League matches and the win opened up the group.  Norwich City had been looking forward to, what would have been, their first ever foray into European Competition after they lifted the League Cup back in April beating Sunderland who then joined Norwich in being relegated from the First Division.

22^nd October 1986, The Dell, 10,503

GROUP ONE

SOUTHAMPTON   (0)   1  (Armstrong pen)

LIVERPOOL   (0)   1   (Walsh)

Southampton: Shilton; Baker, Whitlock (Townsend), Wright, Holmes; Case, Cockerill, Puckett, Armstrong; Wallace, Moran

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Neal, Lawrenson, Hansen, Beglin; Nicol, Johnston, McMahon, Molby (MacDonald), Whelan; Walsh

23^rd October 1986, Carrow Road, 12,196

GROUP TWO

NORWICH CITY   (0)   1   (Mendham)

EVERTON   (0)   0

Norwich: Woods; Culverhouse, Bruce, Watson, Phelan; Barham, Mendham (Brooke), Williams, van Wyk; Drinkell, Biggins

Everton: Southall; Stevens, Ratcliffe, Harper, Van den Hauwe; Steven, Heath, Bracewell, Sheedy; Lineker (Richardson), Sharp (Wilkinson)

Manchester United’s 100% record in the League had gone but by this stage they were still unbeaten and nine points clear of Liverpool in second.  Norwich had begun to get some sort of momentum going in Division Two after a poor start and after playing in front of crowds of around 10,000 they seem galvanised despite Old Trafford being less than half full.  Wayne Biggins had scored his first goal of the season at Brighton the previous weekend, and he opened the scoring here as well.  Norwich lead at the break but a Norman Whiteside penalty

in the second half rescued a point for the home side.

6^th November 1985, Old Trafford, 20,130

GROUP TWO

MANCHESTER UNITED   (0)   1   (Whiteside pen)

NORWICH CITY   (1)   1   (Biggins)

Man Utd: Turner; Gidman, McGrath, Hogg, Albiston; Blackmore, Whiteside, Olsen, Barnes (Strachan); Hughes, Brazil

Norwich: Woods; Culverhouse, Bruce, Watson, Phelan; Barham, Mendham, Williams, van Wyk; Drinkell, Biggins

By the time December came along, Liverpool had hunted down United’s lead at the top of the League to reduce the deficit to just two points.  In the Super Cup they made it two wins out of two as Kevin MacDonald and Paul Walsh scored first half goals which ultimately saw off any challenge Spurs might have been able to muster.

In the other group, Manchester United’s poor overall form continued.  Since their last game against Norwich they had yet to win a match of any sort, and there was a kind of irony in Everton’s winning goal coming from one of their own players, Frank Stapleton, who put through his own net.  The defeat for United meant they could only qualify for the Semi-Finals if they beat Norwich by two goals in the last group game.

3^rd December 1985, Anfield, 14,855

GROUP ONE

LIVERPOOL   (2)   2   (MacDonald, Walsh)

TOTTENHAM   (0)   0

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Nicol, Lawrenson, Hansen, Beglin; Johnston, Lee, Molby (Wark), MacDonald; Walsh, Rush

Tottenham: Clemence; Stevens, Perryman (Thomas), Mabbutt, Hughton; P Allen (Ardiles), Roberts, Hoddle, Waddle; Falco, C Allen

4^th December 1985, Goodison Park, 20,542

GROUP TWO

EVERTON   (0)   1   (Stapleton og)

MANCHESTER UNITED   (0)   0

Everton: Southall, Harper (Pointon), Ratcliffe, Stevens, Van den Hauwe; Steven, Bracewell, Richardson; Heath, Lineker, Wilkinson

Man Utd: Turner; Gidman, McGrath, Blackmore, Gibson; Strachan, Whiteside (Dempsey), Olsen; Stapleton, Hughes, Brazil

When Norwich and United met at Carrow Road to decide the other qualifier from this group, their respective League form was poles apart.  Norwich were unbeaten in their last nine, having won three in a row.  United had just beaten Ipswich, to end a run of four without a win.  The biggest crowd of the season at Carrow Road saw David Williams give the home side a half-time lead, but Colin Gibson equalised in the second half for the visitors.  Norwich then just saw out the game to earn a draw and a place, alongside Everton, in the Semi-Finals.

11^th December 1985, Carrow Road, 15,449

GROUP TWO

NORWICH CITY   (1)   1   (Williams)

MANCHESTER UNITED   (0)   1   (Gibson)

Norwich: Woods; Culverhouse, Bruce, Watson, Phelan; Barham, Mendham, Williams, van Wyk; Drinkell, Biggins

Man Utd: Bailey; Gidman, McGrath, Garton, Gibson; Strachan, Dempsey, Blackmore,Whiteside; Stapleton, Brazil

With Liverpool already having confirmed their progression to the Semis, these two were fighting to join them.  It was Southampton’s final group game and anything other than a win would see the end of their participation.  Southampton had already beaten Spurs when the two met at The Dell in the League a month earlier, but this time Spurs would get their revenge.  Mark Falco and Clive Allen put the visitors in front in the first half.  Despite Danny Wallace getting a goal back for the home side, David Leworthy made certain of the points for Spurs and Southampton were out.

17th December 1985, The Dell, 4,680

GROUP ONE

SOUTHAMPTON   (0)   1   (Wallace)

TOTTENHAM   (2)   3   (Falco, C Allen, Leworthy)

Southampton: Kite; Forrest, Wright, Bond, Dennis; Case (Townsend), Cockerill, Holmes, Armstrong (Puckett); Moran, Wallace

Tottenham: Clemence; Thomas, Perryman, Mabbutt, Hughton; Stevens, Roberts, Ardiles (Leworthy), P Allen; Falco, C Allen (Cooke)

Group One was already decided when Liverpool visited White Hart Lane.  For Tottenham this came in the middle of a six game run without a win, and a measure of how they rated this particular competition could be evidenced in calling up forty one year old former legend, Pat Jennings to give Ray Clemence a rest.  During a goalless first half, Kevin MacDonald broke his arm in a collision with Steve Perryman and had to be replaced.  Ian Rush scored early in the second half, and then again just after Mark Lawrenson had made it 2-0.  Three goals in twelve minutes finished off the hosts and Liverpool marched on having dropped just two points.

14^th January 1986, White Hart Lane, 10,078

GROUP ONE

TOTTENHAM   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL   (0)   3   (Rush 2, Lawrenson)

Tottenham: Jennings; Perryman, Stevens, Miller, Hughton; Chiedozie, Roberts, Mabbutt, P Allen, Galvin (Cooke); C Allen

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Nicol, Lawrenson, Hansen, MacDonald (Gillespie); Lee, McMahon (Wark), Molby, Whelan; Walsh, Rush

Semi-Finals

There were already noises being made about fixture pile-up by the time the Semis arrived.  Liverpool had already made it into the Semi-Finals of the League Cup and were still in the FA Cup, which had reached the Fifth Round stage.  Everton and Tottenham were due to meet in the FA Cup so they had other matters to concentrate on.  Everton were sitting top of the League with Liverpool in fourth and so this competition was viewed as little more than an inconvenience.

At a snowy White Hart Lane just 7,548 bothered to turn up for the game where Everton fielded only three first team regulars.  The game ended goalless and was largely a forgettable affair.

At Carrow Road Norwich took on Liverpool.  Norwich were unbeaten in their last seventeen in the League and had just come off a run of ten wins on the spin.  Liverpool were fourth in the League, three points behind leaders, Everton.  They’d already faced Norwich this season when they thumped them 5-0 in the FA Cup Third Round at Anfield.  Norwich’s top scorer, Kevin Drinkell broke the deadlock in the second half but player-manager, Kenny Dalglish, equalised for the visitors ten minutes from time and the game ended level.

5^th February 1986, White Hart Lane, 7,548

TOTTENHAM   (0)   0

EVERTON   (0)   0

Tottenham: Clemence; Perryman, Mabbutt, Miller, Stevens; Chiedozie, Roberts (Hughton), Crook, Waddle; Falco (P Allen), C Allen

Everton: Southall; Stevens, Van den Hauwe, Marshall, Pointon; Steven, Reid, Billinge, Richardson; Coyle, Wilkinson

Carrow Road, 15,313

NORWICH CITY   (0)   1   (Drinkell)

LIVERPOOL   (0)   1   (Dalglish)

Norwich: Woods; Culverhouse, Bruce, Watson, Phelan; Barham, Mendham, Williams; Drinkell, Deeham, Biggins

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Nicol, Lawrenson, Gillespie, Beglin; Johnston, Lee, Molby, Whelan; Walsh, Dalglish

The fixture schedule only allowed one of the Semi-Finals to be played before the end of the season.  At Goodison Park, if Howard Kendall thought the whole competition a waste of time, he found his players were keener on it as they swept Tottenham aside.  Everton were three points ahead of Liverpool at the top of the First Division, unbeaten in eleven and just had a six-game winning run ended when they were held at Chelsea.  Tottenham were mid-table, having lost six of their last ten.  Adrian Heath put Everton in front but Mark Falco equalised and with both sides still level after ninety minutes, the game went into extra time.  Goals from Derek Mountfield and Graeme Sharp won it for Everton and they were through to the Final.

19^th March 1986, Goodison Park, 12,008

EVERTON   (0)   3   (Heath, Mountfield, Sharp)

TOTTENHAM   (0)   1   (Falco)

Everton: Southall; Billinge (van den Hauwe), Marshall, Mountfield, Pointon; Harper, Heath, Richardson, Sheedy; Wilkinson (Sharp), Coyle

Tottenham: Clemence; Thomas (Bowen), Stevens, Miller, Hughton; Chiedozie, P Allen, Mabbutt, Galvin; Falco, Waddle

But the identity of their opponents was not known for almost three weeks as Liverpool were chasing trophies on three fronts.  They’d just fallen at the final hurdle in a bid to get to yet another League Cup Final when a late goal against QPR knocked them out in the Semis.  Two days before the other Semi-Final in this competition, they overcame Watford in a replay of their Sixth Round FA Cup encounter.  By the time they found space in the calendar for this tie they’d booked their place in the FA Cup Final and three days before this game Kenny Dalglish had scored the winner against Chelsea to claim another League title, and his first in his first year in charge of the team.

Four days before the FA Cup Final Liverpool lined up at Anfield for the visit of Norwich City, and began by parading the League Championship trophy.  With the tie level, former Tottenham midfielder, Gary Brooke, gave Norwich an early lead.  They had already won the Second Division title, having lead since mid-December and were in buoyant mood.  Liverpool didn’t come back into it until ten minutes into the second half when Kevin   On seventy two minutes, Jan Molby converted a penalty and then soon after Craig Johnston completed the scoring and Liverpool’s 3-1 win matched that of Everton’s in the other Semi-Final.

MacDonald equalised.

6^th May 1986, Anfield, 26,696

LIVERPOOL   (0)   3   (MacDonald, Molby pen, Johnston)

NORWICH CITY   (1)   1   (Brooke)

Liverpool:Grobbelaar; Nicol, Gillespie, Lawrenson, Beglin; Johnston, Lee, MacDonald, McMahon, Whelan (Molby); Walsh

Norwich: Woods; Culverhouse, Bruce, Watson, Phelan (Haylock); Clayton, Brooke, Williams, van Wyk; Drinkell, Deehan

Liverpool and Everton, due to meet in the FA Cup Final, were paired again in another Final but when it would be played was highly doubtful.  With the World Cup looming and England, Scotland and Northern Ireland all booked to appear, the authorities were keen to allow players as much time off beforehand.  As it was there was no time to play the Final before the start of the following season, so we had the unusual aspect of a Final of a competition being played four months after the finalists were known.  For Everton the gap for them was six months between their Semi-Final win and the Final.

Final

This was the third successive trophy on offer to English clubs which had been contested by Liverpool and Everton.  Liverpool won the FA Cup in May, the two shared the Charity Shield in August and here they were contesting the, seemingly unwanted, Super Cup.  By the time of the first leg the two clubs were again in the top three in the League, with Everton unbeaten.  Ian Rush put Liverpool in front after just six minutes and they held the lead until former Liverpool player, Kevin Sheedy, equalised five minutes before the break. 

After the turnaround, Steve McMahon restored Liverpool’s lead ten minutes into the second period and then midway through the half, Ian Rush scored his second and Liverpool had a useful lead to take to the second leg.

16^th September 1986, Anfield, 20,660

LIVERPOOL   (1)   3   (Rush 2, McMahon)

EVERTON   (1)   1   (Sheedy)

Liverpool: Hooper; Venison, Lawrenson, Gillespie, Beglin; Nicol, MacDonald, McMahon, Whelan (Molby); Rush, Dalglish

Everton: Mimms; Billing, Ratcliffe, Marshall, Power; Steven, Adams, Langley, Sheedy (Aspinall); Wilkinson, Sharp

Just 26,068 turned up at Goodison Park for the second leg as Liverpool took their two goal advantage there.  Two soon became three when Ian Rush was again on target after ten minutes.  He scored again just before the half-hour to give the visitors a lead at the break.  Just after the hour Trevor Steven missed a penalty for Everton when he hit the post and then Stevie Nicol scored almost immediately and the game was all over as a contest.  There was still time for Rush to complete his hat-trick with Graeme Sharp getting no more than a consolation goal as Liverpool ran out comfortable winners, 4-1 on the night and 7-2 overall.

Liverpool lifted the new trophy for the one and only time and there were also tankards for the players, which seemed odd as there was a lot of fuss about choosing a brewery as a sponsor for the competition.  As the tournament was only taking place due to the European ban on English clubs after the Heysel tragedy, it was thought that as heavy drinking had clearly played a part in the events of that evening, a brewery would not be a suitable sponsor.

30^th September 1986, Goodison Park, 26,068

EVERTON   (1)   1   (Sharp)

LIVERPOOL   (2)   4   (Rush 3, Nicol)

Everton: Mimms; Billinge, Ratcliffe, Mountfield, Power; Steven, Adams, Heath, Sheedy (Aspinall)(Pointon); Wilkinson, Sharp

Liverpool: Grobbelaar; Gillespie, Hansen, Lawrenson, Beglin; Nicol (Venison), Molby, McMahon (Walsh), Whelan; Wark, Rush

Five Favourite Wins Against - Man Utd away

Continuing the series where I look back at my five favourite wins the Liverpool’s next opponents.  This weekend Liverpool travel to Old Trafford for one of the biggest fixtures in British football to meet Manchester United and here are my five favourite wins from past encounters.

26^th December 1978

MAN UTD   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL   (2)   3   (Kennedy R 5, Case 25, Fairclough 67)

MAN UTD: Bailey; Greenhoff B, Buchan, McQueen, Connell; Coppell, McIlroy, Thomas; Greenhoff J, Ritchie, Macari

LIVERPOOL: Clemence; Neal, Thompson, Hansen, Hughes; Case, McDermott, Souness, Kennedy R; Fairclough, Dalglish

Boxing Day 1978 and Liverpool were top of the table, a point ahead of Everton.  Liverpool had been denied a hat-trick of League titles by Nottingham Forest the year before, and were determined to fight back.  This was their record breaking season and they were especially impressive in defence.  Man United were back in 7^th and managed by Dave Sexton, whose QPR side had run Liverpool close to the title in 1976.

Liverpool had actually hit a bit of a rough patch with 2 defeats in their last 3 matches, against Arsenal and, surprisingly, Bristol City.  Those disappointments were sandwiched between a 2-0 win over Champions, Nottingham Forest.  United had just lost at Bolton, ending a run of 3 straight wins.

The home side were off to a great start when Ray Kennedy opened the scoring after just 5 minutes.  Kennedy won goal of the season for his excellent strike against Derby and this season was his best ever in the League for Liverpool.  Midway through the first half and Jimmy Case made it 2-0.

Liverpool were in complete control in the game as United struggled to find any sort of grip on the game.  Their dominance was underlined when David Fairclough scored the 3^rd goal.  He only managed to net twice that season as he struggled to find a place in an increasingly dominant side who swept all before them.  The result was rarely in doubt and it was the start of a run where Liverpool would win 16 of their final 22 matches, losing only once.  They won the title by 8pts from Forest with United back in 9^th.  United did get their own back in beating Liverpool in the FA Cup Semi-Final after a replay.

In the United side this day was a young Northern Irish defender, Tom Connell.  He’d made his debut in the Bolton defeat, where United lost 0-3.  Three days later he retained his place for another 0-3 defeat and was never seen again.

7^th April 1982

MAN UTD   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL   (0)   1   (Johnston 63)

MAN UTD: Bailey; Duxbury, Moran (Grimes), Buchan, Albiston; Coppell, Robson, Moses, Wilkins; McGarvey, Stapleton

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Neal, Thompson, Lawrenson, Kennedy A; Lee, Johnston, Souness (McDermott), Whelan; Rush, Dalglish

As with the 1978-79 match Liverpool arrived at Old Trafford in a season where they were determined to win their League title back having lost it to Aston Villa the season before.  They were in great form too, having won their last 5 matches.  They were top of the table, ahead of Ipswich on goal difference with 11 games to go.  United were in 5^th, 5pts off the lead.

Seven minutes into the game and United were awarded a penalty.  Frank Stapleton stepped up to take it but Bruce Grobbelaar saved it.  This endeared the Zimbabwean to many Liverpool fans early on in his career and years later Bruce explained how it came about.

“I was sitting in the dressing room reading the programme.  In there was a sequence of photographs of where Frank Stapleton put his last home penalty.  I took this on board and I thought nothing of it.  Sure enough they got a penalty.  There goes Mr. Frank Stapleton to take the penalty.  I shimmied the opposite way and then I went the way they showed me in the book and I managed to save the penalty.”

This was Grobbelaar’s first season and he’d struggled for the first 4-5 months but a ‘gentle’ word from Bob Paisley turned things round after Liverpool were 12^th at Christmas.  After a Boxing Day defeat at home to Manchester City they lost just once more that season.

In the second half Craig Johnston broke the deadlock with what proved to be the only goal of the game.  It was a crucial victory as Ipswich were being held at Sunderland on the same night.  Things got even better three days later as Johnston was again on the scoresheet as they thumped Manchester City, 5-0 as a Glenn Hoddle goal gave Tottenham a win against Ipswich.  Liverpool were 5pts clear at the top and never looked back.

Liverpool won their 13^th title and the 5^th under Bob Paisley in 8 years.  United finished 3^rd but were 9pts behind the winners.  Liverpool also won the League Cup beating Tottenham 3-1.

18^th March 1990

MAN UTD   (0)   1   (Whelan og 83)

LIVERPOOL   (1)   2   (Barnes 15, pen 55)

MAN UTD: Leighton; Anderson (Duxbury), Bruce, Pallister, Phelan; Blackmore, Phelan, Ince; Wallace (Beardsmore), McClair, Hughes

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Venison, Hansen, Hysen, Staunton; Houghton, McMahon, Whelan; Beardsley, Rush, Barnes

)

Liverpool travelled to Old Trafford in 1990 on an unbeaten run of 12 matches but still 5pts behind leaders Aston Villa.  United were struggling down in 16^th, just 2pts above the drop-zone.  They won just 2 of their past 15 matches and things were decidedly unsettled around Old Trafford.

Despite their dominance during the 1980’s it had been eight years since Liverpool last won at Old Trafford and United had lost only 2 of their previous 20 League games against Liverpool.

United could’ve taken an early lead but for Steve Staunton’s excellent interception when McClair looked to have a free shot on goal.  But Liverpool were soon into their stride and 15 minutes in they had made the breakthrough.  Venison dispossessed Martin, fed Houghton who then drilled his pass to Beardsley.  The diminutive Beardsley, ever industrious, then instinctively found Barnes marauding his way down the left.  Barnes ran most of the United half unchallenged before sliding the ball under Jim Leighton.  It was a goal of simplicity made possible by players who just knew where each other would be at any given time.

United then had a couple of chances to equalise but the visitors always looked the more likely to score.  Then early in the second half Liverpool pounced on some sloppy United passing and Houghton played the ball forward to Beardsley, just outside the United area.  McMahon was also involved in the play which saw Viv Anderson’s clumsy attempt to halt Rush’s progress bring about a penalty.  John Barnes stepped up and sent Leighton the wrong way for a 2-goal lead.

The second half then slipped into a pattern of Liverpool creating, then spurning, several chances but they looked comfortable for a victory until the game took a rather odd turn which brought about a much more tense finish than the previous 80 minutes had promised.  Bruce played a long ball from the back but Hysen got up to nod the ball down where it fell to Ronnie Whelan, about 25 yards from his own goal.  Whilst facing his own goal, Whelan presumably intended to play the ball back to Grobbelaar to take the sting out of the attack but unbelievably he met the ball on the half-volley and it looped over the Liverpool keeper for a shock goal.

It was one of the strangest own-goals and possibly one of the longest and it brought about a strange period when Liverpool seemed slightly uncertain of their own ability to see the game out.  They did, though, and moved to within 2pts of Villa and still a game in hand.

Both Liverpool and United were expected to meet in the FA Cup Final too, as they were both in the Semi-Finals by this stage, but Liverpool were beaten in a dramatic Semi-Final by Crystal Palace, who themselves were minutes from beating United in the Final.  Had they done that, then the next 23 years could have been completely different.

Liverpool won the title by 9pts from Aston Villa and just missed out on another double by losing the FA Cup Semi-Final.  United finished in 13^th, just 5pts from relegation, but won the FA Cup in a replay against Crystal Palace.

17^th December 2000

MAN UTD   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL   (1)   1   (Murphy 43)

MAN UTD: Barthez; Neville G, Brown, Silvestre, Irwin (Chadwick); Beckham, Butt (Greening), Keane, Scholes, Giggs; Solskjaer

LIVERPOOL: Westerveld; Babbel, Hyypia, Henchoz, Carragher; Gerrard, Murphy (McAllister), Biscan, Barmby; Heskey, Owen (Smicer)

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When Liverpool arrived at Old Trafford just before Christmas 2000, they were lying in 6^th having already lost 6 of their 17 matches.  United were top of the table, having lost just once, at Arsenal, and had picked up 25pts from a possible 28pts since then.

At this stage, Liverpool hadn’t won at Old Trafford since 1990, when they last won the League, and had not beaten United home or away in the Premier League for five years.  During this match they displayed defensive qualities which had been absent on numerous occasions that season.  Gerrard was immense in midfield, well supported by Biscan.  United seemed complacent, possibly underestimating their opponents.

The game turned just before half-time.  In fact, it wasn’t until the 42^nd minute that Liverpool had their first meaningful chance on goal when Scholes cleared off the line from Heskey.  A minute later Gary Neville inexplicably chose to punch the ball just outside his own area and Liverpool were awarded a penalty.  Danny Murphy stepped up and curled it perfectly into the top right-hand corner of the net leaving Barthez stranded.

Liverpool were able to defend their lead throughout the second half by a combination of working extremely hard as well as the confusion around United’s attacking options.  Ferguson had started with Scholes playing off Solskjaer but then changed that to move Giggs there, but neither combination bore fruit.  Without Cole, Yorke or Sheringham they were fairly impotent but nothing should be taken away from the effort put in by the visitors.  Liverpool’s previous league game had been a home defeat to Ipswich for which Houllier received strong criticism.  But now the Frenchman received deserved praise for his tactics.  Ferguson’s attacking plight was summed up when he brought on two youngsters, Greening and Chadwick, only to see the latter get sent-off in the last minute.  It was the first time a United player had been sent-off at Old Trafford since April 1998.

In this series I have tended to mostly enjoy games where Liverpool has crushed their opponents in a shower of goals, but this victory was special as it ended the long unbeaten home record of United.  As the Liverpool Echo put it -  “After 3,240 minutes, 296 fouls, 28 bookings and 133 goals, United lose at Old Trafford”.

Liverpool were up to 5^th and when they beat Arsenal the following week were now just 2pts off 2^nd place.  They ended the season 3^rd in the League as United won the title, but Liverpool pulled off a unique treble by winning the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup.

14^th March 2009

MAN UTD   (1)   1   (Ronaldo pen 23)

LIVERPOOL   (2)   4  (Torres 28, Gerrard pen 44, Aurelio 77, Dossena 90)

MAN UTD: van der Sar; O’Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Anderson (Berbatov), Carrick (Scholes), Park (Giggs); Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez

LIVERPOOL: Reina; Skrtel, Hyypia, Carragher, Aurelio; Gerrard (El Zhar), Lucas, Mascherano, Riera (Dossena); Kuyt, Torres (Babel)

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A truly memorable day for many a Liverpool fan.  Rafa Benitez had enjoyed success in the tactical battle against Alex Ferguson before, but this was a day when they just ground their opponents into the dirt.  This was United’s biggest league defeat for 17 years and one which saw their acclaimed boss running scared of the post-match interviews.

Liverpool came into the game with just 1 defeat in their last 17 matches, and were 3^rd in the table level on points with Chelsea and 7pts behind the leader, United.  United had won 11 straight matches coming into this one and were unbeaten in their last 16.  It had been over a year since United fans saw their side beaten at home and their hopes of continued success seemed boosted as Liverpool’s plans were thrown into chaos just before kick-off when Arbeloa withdrew through injury.

23 minutes into the game and Ji-Sung Park was put through by Tevez into the area and as he pushed the ball passed Reina, he made sure he left a trailing leg for Reina to slide into and the referee, Alan Wiley, had no hesitation in signalling for a penalty.  Cristiano Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot and United were in front. 

This season United had gone from mid-November to mid-February without conceding a goal in the league, and so were expecting to maintain their lead.

Five minutes later and with the ball in Liverpool’s right hand corner of their half, Martin Skrtel launched a ball forward where Torres was marked by both Ferdinand and Vidic.  Vidic made the cardinal error of letting the ball bounce and this allowed Torres to nick the ball off him and as van der Sar came out, Torres just dinked the ball over him for the equaliser.

As half-time approached Torres threaded a ball through for Gerrard to run onto and he had the better of Patrice Evra whose late challenge brought down the Liverpool captain and Wiley signalled to the spot again.  Gerrard stepped up to take it and beat van der Sar to give the visitors a half-time lead.

In the second half United came at Liverpool and Ronaldo hit the post with a cross, then Tevez just failed to turn the ball into the net but things soon turned sour as Vidic hauled down Gerrard.  Ferguson had just completely changed his midfield by using all three subs and now Vidic was sent-off for a desperate challenge when adjudged to be the last man.  Once everything had died down and the home players got used to one of theirs being sent-off at home, Fabio Aurelio stepped up and calmly curled the ball inside van der Sar’s near post.  Liverpool were 3-1 up and only the second side to score at least 3 goals against United since Chelsea almost three years previously.

Gerrard then blasted the ball over the bar from 10 yards out but as the final whistle loomed, Reina’s goal-kick bounced all the way through to the edge of the United box and Dossena, a second half substitute for Riera, lobbed the ball over van der Sar.  Old Trafford was already emptying out before the 4^th goal went in but the travelling Liverpool fans were having the time of their life.

For Liverpool, this game was one of 11 wins from their final 12 matches but they were still 4pts short of Champions, United.

Extra

1^st October 1995

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This wasn’t a victory but contained two unforgettable goals from Robbie Fowler.  United fans may point to the return of Eric Cantona after his lengthy ban for attacking a supporter, but for many of us Fowler’s 2^nd goal where he barges Gary Neville out of the way before deftly chipping Schmeichel, with live long in the memory.

HEAD TO HEAD at Old Trafford

Matches: 80

Liverpool win: 15

Man Utd win: 40

Draws: 25

Liverpool goals: 78

Man Utd goals: 144