Liverpool Football Club - Were everywhere, us: Liverpools 2014/15 season told through the stories of fans and foe

First published by Pitch Publishing, 2015

Pitch Publishing

A2 Yeoman Gate

Yeoman Way

Durrington

BN13 3QZ

www.pitchpublishing.co.uk

Sachin Nakrani and Karl Coppack, 2015

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Print ISBN: 978-178531-042-3

eBook ISBN: 978-1-78531-101-7

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I never minded whether we attacked the Kop in the first half or the second, it didnt bother me. But I know it did bother our opponents. You could see it in their faces, you still can, and it never surprises me when a visiting captain wins the toss at Anfield and switches Liverpool around.

The Kop is a psychological disadvantage for teams that come to Anfield. They dont like it, they fear it even, particularly during the era when I was a Liverpool player. Back then it was all-standing and the roar the 20,000 or so people in there made was incredible. It disturbed whoever we were facing and showed just how passionate Liverpool supporters were, and are, about their club.

Having lived in both halves of England I can say with confidence that people from the north of England are more passionate than those from the south, and that people from Liverpool are the most passionate of the lot. Scousers have a Latin-like temperament in that they are forthright and, occasionally, aggressive in how they speak to you, but they are also incredibly loving and loyal. In that sense Liverpool feels like a very un-English city, lacking the reserve that is common in many other parts of the country, and nowhere is that more obvious than at Anfield and the way in which the fans get behind the team. At its best it is loud, proud and colourful.

Liverpool has changed since I first arrived here in 1987 but at its heart it remains a working-class city where the people are down to earth and expect everyone else to be the same, including their footballers. It struck me the first time I met the Liverpool team during my time at Watford just how, well, normal they were. I remember playing at Anfield during the 1982/83 season, when Liverpool won the title and Watford finished second, and afterwards going for a drink in the players lounge. I was suddenly in the company of the best team in the country, if not Europe, and yet there wasnt a single superstar in the room they talked to me as if I was their equal, as if we were all friends having a beer at the local pub. Id seen the same with England, when I came across the likes of Phil Neal, Alan Kennedy and Sammy Lee. This way of behaving no doubt had much to do with the city these guys were from and represented, and it was universal. Even the likes of Ian Rush and Kenny Dalglish didnt act like superstars, and they really were superstars.

Id like to think thats why Liverpudlians also took to me. From the moment I arrived to now I have always been a normal person who does normal things, like go to Tesco and pick up the kids from school. In this city I have always been John Barnes the man and not John Barnes the footballer, and the people here appreciate that. More so, they demand it.

It hasnt always been easy and I remember there were a few supporters who didnt want me at Liverpool when I signed from Watford. The club had come in for me in January 1987 but I didnt move until the summer because Graham Taylor, Watfords manager at the time, made it clear that I would not be leaving mid-season. That, however, was never announced by Liverpool so when I didnt join in the January it was assumed that I had snubbed the club. I hadnt of course but that view stuck so there was a lot of resentment when I did eventually move; some fans said I had come reluctantly and that I actually wanted to join Arsenal. Some simply didnt want a black guy playing for their club.

My friend, who watched Liverpool a lot at the time, tells a story of being sat next to two old guys on my home debut, a 2-0 win against Oxford in September 1987, and hearing them moan about me straight from kick-off. I then scored with a free kick in the first half and one turned to the other and said, Well hes not as black as I first thought.

Some people might find that story depressing but Ive always been able to laugh about it. After all, it doesnt compare with having bananas thrown at you and monkey chants made in your direction, which was often the case in 1981, the year I made my debut for Watford. But even then I didnt need anyones sympathy or support. Why should I? Im an empowered human being, I always have been, and in no way would I ever allow the actions of an ignorant minority negatively affect me.

That first season at Liverpool was a great one for all involved, especially the fans who were clearly enjoying watching such an entertaining team perform week in, week out. Ive always said that the 1977 and 1984 Liverpool sides are the best in the clubs history, but theres no doubt the 1987/88 team that I played in was the most entertaining and, as one of the players, you could see just how much we meant to those who watched us by the noise they made, especially at home. It seemed to get louder every time we took to the pitch.

A relationship existed between the team and the fans and its one that only strengthened after Hillsborough. That was a dark time but it brought people together and showed just how caring and supportive all Liverpudlians are, for it should never be forgotten that Evertonians also played their part in helping the city grieve and heal.

I went to as many funerals as I could and thats obviously something that still lives with me. I still see some of the families now and all of us have experienced much since 1989. Were all older yet that connection, that instant recognition, is still there. It will never leave us. In that sense there is something very deep and very personal about the bond that exists between Liverpool Football Club and its supporters. Together they have shared both joy and tragedy.

Youll Never Walk Alone unites everyone and while I dont have a favourite Liverpool song or chant that one is special, and personally so because it was played at my fathers funeral. He loved Youll Never Walk Alone but mainly because he was a big fan of Carousel, the musical that it came from. I never knew about those origins until my father died. Before that I thought it was just a football song, born and heard on the terraces.

Nowadays you hear Youll Never Walk Alone not only at Anfield but across the world. Liverpool has become a truly international club and I am forever meeting new and different fans when I go to countries like China, South Africa and elsewhere. For them Liverpool is a unique club, like no other on the planet, with an identity that is both local and universal, traditional yet expansive. Whether a supporter has seen Liverpool play in the flesh or not, they feel they belong.

And when I meet a supporter, whether it is abroad or at home, they always ask me the same question, When are we going to win the league again? Like most people I felt it was going to happen in 2014 only for that sadly not to prove the case. But I feel confident Liverpool can and will be champions in the future.