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 - Tottenham at Anfield

Continuing the series where I look back at my five favourite wins the Liverpool’s next opponents.  This weekend Liverpool play against Tottenham at Anfield.  Here are my five favourite wins from past encounters, with some of them packed full of goals.

2^nd September 1978

LIVERPOOL   (3)   7   (Dalglish 8, 20, R.Kennedy 28, Johnson 48, 58, Neal pen 64, McDermott 76)

TOTTENHAM   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL: Clemence; Neal, Thompson, Hughes (Johnson), A.Kennedy; Case, McDermott, Souness, R.Kennedy; Dalglish, Heighway

TOTTENHAM: Daines; McAllister, Perryman, Lacy, Naylor; Ardiles, Hoddle, Villa, McNab; Duncan, Taylor

After winning back-to-back League titles in 1976 and 1977, Liverpool lost out to Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest in 1978.  They returned for the new season in determined mood, having won all three of their opening matches, 2-1, 3-0 & 4-1.  Today they were to go more than one better.

Tottenham had just returned to the Division One having spent a season in Division Two and had shocked the football world by signing two players from Argentina’s victorious World Cup winning squad.  Ossie Ardiles and Ricardo Villa had inspired Spurs to claim a 1-1 draw at defending Champions, Forest, on the opening day.  They were then brought down to earth by Aston Villa winning 4-1 at White Hart Lane.  But today, Spurs discovered what it was really like playing at the top level as they attempted to do something no Spurs side had done since 1912 – win at Anfield.

Kenny Dalglish, who’d scored in every game so far this season, got the home side off and running after just 8 minutes.  Jimmy Case had mishit his shot and it fell to Dalglish on the penalty spot with his back to goal.  With a turn, which was to become a trademark of the man, he lost his marker, Lacy, and fired a left-foot shot past Daines.  After 20 minutes, Dalglish doubled his, and his sides, tally.  Heighway set McDermott away on the right, and his cross was poorly dealt with by the visitors allowing Dalglish to find Ray Kennedy at the far post.  His shot was stopped by Perryman almost on the line and bounced out to Souness to played it back for Case to drive it from just outside the area.  Once again, Case misdirected his shot but Dalglish was able to turn it in.  Then just before half-time the lead was three.  McDermott, wide on the right, hit a long cross to the far post where Ray Kennedy got up to head in the third.  The visitors went in completely shell-shocked, but worse was to come for them.

In the second half Liverpool completely took their opponents apart and it only took three minutes for them to add to their lead.  David Johnson had come on as a first half substitute for Emlyn Hughes and the change in formation was to their advantage.  McDermott was again involved down the right and his low cross found Dalglish on the edge of the area.  Some great one-touch play saw Dalglish knock it back to Johnson, who then found Souness and he in turn clipped it over Lacy for Dalglish to try and beat Daines from the right-hand edge of the 6-yard box.  Daines managed to block the shot but it bobbled clear for Johnson to fire a low shot past three Spurs defenders for 4-0.  Ten minutes later and Johnson was at it again.  This move began on the left as Ray Kennedy found Dalglish in the inside-left position.  He waited for Johnson to make a diagonal run and his pass was perfect to allow Johnson to fire another low shot through Daines legs for 5-0. 

John Duncan produced a miraculous clearance off the line to deny a 6^th goal but then tripped Heighway in the area to give Phil Neal the simple task of beating an already demoralised Daines to confirm the 6-0 scoreline.  Then came the goal which is still talked about today.  It has to be one of my favourite goals of all-time and unfortunately I cannot find a clip which includes enough of the build-up to qualify it as such a classic.

Tottenham have a corner on the right and defending the near post is Terry McDermott.  This is important to picture this in isolation as it gives you a full appreciation of what follows.  The kick is defended and the ball comes to Dalglish who is about 30 yards from his own goal.  Cue a trademark McDermott run.  Once you watch the clip you just pick up McDermott behind Dalglish to his right, with both Argentinians between them.  Dalglish plays a ball to Johnson who is just inside the Liverpool half, who controls it and hits a right-foot pass out to Heighway wide on the left wing.  As Johnson plays the pass, McDermott is now just behind him having made it to the centre circle.  The ball from Johnson is played ahead of Heighway enabling him to run onto and hit a first time cross into the area where it is met superbly at the back post by McDermott, who had literally run the full length of the pitch.  McDermott met it perfectly to head in the 7^th goal and easily the best of the day.  It was a classic goal and epitomised that Liverpool side and the confidence they had in their own, and each other’s, ability.

This was record season for Liverpool as they broke a number of records such as most points, most goals, fewest goals conceded at home and most clean-sheets on their way to winning the title.  For Tottenham they recovered to finish 11^th.

15^th May 1982

LIVERPOOL   (0)   3   (Lawrenson 51, Dalglish 55, Whelan 87)

TOTTENHAM (1)   1   (Hoddle 27)

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Neal, Thompson, Hansen, A.Kennedy; Lee, Souness, Lawrenson, Whelan; Rush, Dalglish

TOTTENHAM: Clemence; Perryman, Miller, Roberts, Hughton; Brooke, Hazard, Hoddle, Villa; Crooks (Price), Falco

As 1978-79 had been a reaction to the disappointment in the League the previous season, so the 1981-82 season had been a reaction to finishing 5^th the season before.  When they lost to Manchester City at home on Boxing Day, Liverpool were back in 12^th having already lost 3 times at Anfield.  But they would lose just twice more as they won an incredible 20 of their final 25 matches.  When Tottenham, in 4^th, arrived at Anfield, Liverpool knew a win would see them win the title.  Liverpool had already been successful against Spurs when they came from behind to beat them at Wembley in the League Cup Final.  This season had seen Bob Paisley make some difficult, but necessary changes to the squad personnel as Ray Clemence, Ray Kennedy and Jimmy Case departed with youngsters such as Ronnie Whelan, Ian Rush, Craig Johnston and Bruce Grobbelaar coming in to right a new chapter in the club’s history.

Tottenham stunned The Kop as Glenn Hoddle scored a stunning opening goal, but the home side didn’t panic.  The visitors had the lead at the break and then came one of the proudest moments I can recall in a football ground.  As Tottenham came out for the second half they were defending the Kop end.  As Ray Clemence, a former Anfield favourite, was greeted by a standing ovation from the home crowd .

But pretty soon all pleasantries were put aside as Liverpool had a Championship to win.  A corner from the right was met by Mark Lawrenson and the scores were level.  Then barely four minutes later, Kenny Dalglish was involved in the build-up which saw Whelan loop the ball over the defence and Dalglish was one-on-one with Clemence, and he made no mistake.  As Tottenham managed a couple of chances to try and equalise, news was coming in that Ipswich were losing at home to Nottingham Forest and then Ronnie Whelan, who’d broken Spurs hearts at Wembley, scored the third and it was party time at Anfield.  Grobbelaar launched a long-kick which was poorly dealt with by Miller on the edge of his own area and it fell to Whelan, who chested it down and as the Spurs defence parted like the Red Sea, the Irishman was able to fire past Clemence to confirm the win and the title.

28^th September 1985

LIVERPOOL   (1)   4   (Lawrenson 44, Rush 56, Molby pen, 61, pen 67)

TOTTENHAM   (0)   1   (Chiedozie 46)

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Neal, Hansen, Lawrenson, Beglin; Johnston, McMahon (MacDonald), Molby, Whelan; Rush, Dalglish

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

At the beginning of the 1985-86 season Liverpool were facing a determined challenge from Manchester United who had won all of their 9 matches.  Liverpool, beaten just once, were in 2^nd and keen to win back their title lost to Everton the previous season.  Tottenham were 5^th having won their last 4 matches. 

Tottenham had finally ended their dismal run when they won at Anfield the previous season, for the first time since 1912, and were keen to make it a double.  The first half was a tough affair with McMahon and Whelan determined to halt any progress the visitors might make.  Then as half-time approached, Lawrenson ran along the bye-line to beat Clemence from the tightest of angles.  But soon after the break, Chiedozie equalised for Tottenham when he fired a shot high over Grobbelaar.  Just over ten minutes later, Beglin’s measured pass beat the Tottenham defence and Rush shot past Clemence from about 15 yards out.  Then just after the hour Liverpool were awarded two penalties.  The first was for a trip from Hughton on Whelan, and the second was for a foul by Roberts on Ian Rush.  Jan Molby took both kicks and, unsurprisingly, didn’t miss with either.

A comprehensive win for a Liverpool side who went onto do ‘the double’.  Liverpool won the title by 2pts from Everton and then beat them 3-1 in the FA Cup Final.  Tottenham finished 10^th in the League.

8^th May 1993

LIVERPOOL   (2)   6   (Rush 20, 88, Barnes 45, 89, Nethercott og 49, Walters pen 85)

TOTTENHAM   (0)   2   (Sheringham 46, Sedgeley 77)

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Jones, Nicol, Wright, Burrows; Walters, Hutchison, Redknapp, Harkness; Rush, Barnes

TOTTENHAM: Walker; McDonald, Mabbutt, Ruddock, van den Hauwe (Nethercott); Anderton, Hill, Sedgeley, Watson (Dearden); Sheringham , Allen

The inaugural season of the Premier League had been a frustrating one for Liverpool as Graeme Souness had kicked out experienced players and brought in several dubious replacements.  But the final day would prove to be a classic.  Liverpool were lying in 8^th at the start of the day, ahead of Tottenham on goal difference.  They had lost their last two matches, at Norwich and Oldham and their tally of 15 defeats is one of their worst records in the top flight.

In the opening stages Paul Allen rattled the Liverpool crossbar with a header but then on 20 minutes, Ian Rush opened the scoring.  A diagonal ball from the left found Rush in the area and he fought off Ruddock to fire past Ian Walker to bring up his 300^th goal for the club.  As half-time approached Bruce Grobbelaar pleased the crowd with a customary foray out of his area as he broke down a Spurs attack and then Redknapp swept the ball out to the right where Mark Walters showed pace to get to the bye-line.  His cross found Barnes in the area he headed Liverpool into a 2-0 lead.

Some fans had barely taken their seats for the second period when a ball over the top saw Sheringham run clear and he slotted it past Grobbelaar to give the visitors some hope.  Within minutes, though, the home side restored their two-goal advantage.  Redknapp on the left wing played it inside to Steve Harkness who fired past Walker, although this was later credited to Stuart Nethercott as an own goal.  Then as the game moved into the final quarter of an hour, Anderton, on the right, helped the ball onto Steve Sedgeley in the area and he managed to beat Mark Wright before his left-foot shot was too hot for Grobbelaar to handle and Spurs were back in it at 2-3.

But then with five minutes to go, Barnes cross from the left saw Nethercott foul Rush and Walters stepped up to fire the penalty under Walker.  Minutes later Spurs made a mess of breaking up another Liverpool attack and Redknapp pounced on a loose pass to run to the bye-line, pull it back where Rush bundled in his 2^nd of the day to make it 5-2.  Then Redknapp was again involved in the build-up which saw the ball played out to Walters on the right and his cross was helped on by Rush for Barnes to nod in from close range and Liverpool had completed an impressive 6-2 win.

Liverpool eventually finished up 6^th with Tottenham in 8^th.

10^th March 2013

LIVERPOOL   (1)   3   (Suarez 21, Downing 66, Gerrard pen 82)

TOTTENHAM   (1)   2   (Vertonghen 45, 53)

LIVERPOOL: Jones; Johnson, Carragher, Agger, Enrique; Downing, Lucas, Gerrard, Coutinho (Allen); Sturridge (Henderson), Suarez

TOTTENHAM: Lloris; Walker, Vertonghen, Dawson, Assou-Ekotto (Carroll); Livermore (Holtby), Parker, Dembele, Bale, Sigurdsson; Defoe

In Brendan Rodgers first season at Liverpool, they were still harbouring hopes of securing European football when Tottenham arrived in March.  Spurs themselves had an eye on a Champions League place.  They were unbeaten in 12 and fresh from a win in the North London derby.  Liverpool, who’d won 1 of their first 7 matches, were coming off the back of 5-0 and 4-0 wins over Swansea and Wigan, respectively.

Twenty minutes in and Coutinho found Jose Enrique on the edge of the Spurs area and then ran round him to receive the return pass and thenthe Uruguayan finished from a tight angle.  A the break approached and with Liverpool keen to close out the half, Tottenham attacked down the right.  The ball was played back to Gareth Bale and his left-foot ball swept into the area found Vertonghen at the back post and his header left Jones stranded.  It was a frustrating goal for the home side to concede as Johnson didn’t do enough to challenge the Belgian.  Eight minutes after the break and Bale’s free-kick was floated into the area and as the home defence failed to clear, the ball dropped for Vertonghen who fired the visitors into the lead.  1-2.

Liverpool came back, though, when Kyle Walker on the halfway line played an inexplicable wayward pass to the edge of his own area where Lloris had to come out and try and intercept it.  But he was beaten to it by Downing and he ran onto beat Vertonghen on the line to equalise.  It was a crazy goal to concede and came soon after Sigurdsson should’ve put them 2-goals clear.  Then, as the game moved into the final 10 minutes, Defoe made a hash of a clearance from a Gerrard free-kick and Suarez was brought down by Assou-Ekotto and the ref pointed to the spot.  Steven Gerrard stepped up to send Lloris the wrong way and for only the second time that season, Liverpool had come back to win after going behind.

Liverpool ended the season in 7^th with Tottenham missing out on Champions League football to Arsenal, finishing in 5^th.

HEAD TO HEAD at Anfield

Matches: 50

Liverpool win: 44

Tottenham win: 6

Draws: 20

Liverpool goals: 136

Tottenham goals: 57