Liverpool FC Season 1993–94. New signings. Huge promise. Same old problems. And the “Kop’s Last Stand”.
“The Kop’s Last Stand”, 30th April 1994.
Welcome to Part 7 of my scrapbooking odyssey on the football team my dear old Mum “persuaded” me to follow when just a small boy and around the mercurial times of Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish, winnings cups in May and seemingly always holding that beautiful gleaming trophy with the “Big Ears”.
I attended my first Liverpool game as a 10 year old on 8th August 1982 when the Reds formed a “triangle” of pre-season friendlies with Coventry City and Ipswich Town and all hosted by my hometown club of Portsmouth. I was already a Red as far back as 1980 and I have no idea how my Mother achieved such a feat but she bought me the “Hitachi” home shirt and one I proudly wore as an 8 year old to a very stuffy, best bib and tucker occasion at Portsmouth Guildhall as I met the Lord Mayor after winning a painting competition with my entry, naturally entitled, “The Football Match”. So of course I was going to attend this Gala event as an 8 year old in my Liverpool shirt. What self respecting Red at that age wouldn’t?
So I’m not a Scouser (though I envy those with that particular birthplace) and I’m an “out of towner”. But please allow me to very briefly give you some bona fides as to the veracity of my support for this wonderful football club.
My first game was 1982 and my last was 2012. In the 30 years in between I have followed the Reds at over 55 league grounds in England and Wales as well as 7 European grounds and I’ve probably travelled to see them 300+ times. Not an idyll boast, nor is it overly ground breaking. I’ve been incredibly lucky as well as being incredibly skint watching the Reds! I became a season ticket holder in the season before the first lock down after being on the waiting list since 1998 . I had the crest tattooed on my arm as a 15 year old, I’ve sat on a cold coach for days going to Switzerland for a 2nd Round Cup Winners Cup tie, I watched *that* goal in *that* 1996 FA Cup Final on a tiny Casio TV outside “our” end of Wembley without a ticket.
Well, I had a ticket, but that’s a whole other story for another day.
So I’m a Southern born Red with a lot of scrapbook cuttings to share and maybe the occasional commentary to go along with them too. I hope you enjoy sharing them with me.
Allez! Allez! Allez!
Disclaimer — All pictures contained within this blog will be almost certainly from the “main” UK publications of the day but more importantly perhaps wholly contained within some loved, if dusty, scrapbooks of a 30 year vintage and placed here purely for enjoyment purposes and I hope that this disclaimer meets everyone’s needs. If not, thank you www.guardian.comwww.dailymail.co.ukwww.thetimes.co.ukwww.mirror.co.ukwww.telegraph.co.ukwww.liverpoolecho.co.uk et al for entertaining this Pritt Stick and scissors wielding young child/spotty teen/tall and gangly late teenager and young adult who should’ve stopped ripping and cutting up newspapers long before he hung up his scissors! All programmes shown here are from my personal collection.
Disclaimer II — This is far from a fully comprehensive review of the season and purely the contents and selected pages from my scrapbooks and boxes of football programmes. I was nicknamed by my Liverpool match going pal as “The Cutter” in reference to an Echo and the Bunnymen song and so hence, here are my cuttings.
Disclaimer III — There will be images from a certain reviled newspaper that I will not name and I only include them (where available) as they represent the cuttings at that time. I despise that “newspaper” and when I used to “go the match” I always wore my Hillsborough Support Group scarf and a white sticker imploring everyone not to buy that unnamed “newspaper”.
So onto the good stuff! I have 10+ seasons of cuttings to share and I hope these scraps from my books jog a memory of the match concerned or the era, the city in general or your life at that time.
Human memories are a precious commodity. I hope you enjoy.
After a long summer of new signings and day after after of tabloid headlines promoting the eventual demise of Graeme Souness as Reds Manager, Liverpool shock the footballing world as usual and “Charlie” stays with the promotion of legendary coach Roy Evans to Assistant Manager.
Liverpool (2) Sheffield Wednesday (1), opening day of the 1993/4 season, 14th August 1993. In front of a near capacity crowd of 44,004 Anfield crowd, Nigel Clough scores twice on his debut and joins Neil Ruddock in a winning Reds debut. Ruddock and Clough formed two of the three parts of a new “spine” in the Reds team.
4 days later and Nigel Clough scores again to seal a 3–1 away win at Queens Park Rangers. Two games. Two wins. And another battered match programme!
More headlines from the 3–1 away win at QPR with goals from veterans Steve Nicol, Ian Rush and new boy Nigel Clough. And a touch of excess glue, just for the sake of authenticity!
Swindon Town (0) Liverpool (5), 22nd August 1993 and a crowd of 17,017 at the Premier League new boys County Ground in Swindon see a brace from Steve McManaman and goals from Ruddock, Whelan and Marsh seal an impressive 5–0 win for the visitors. 3 games. 3 wins.
Liverpool (1) Tottenham Hotspur (2), 25th August 1993. 42,456 witnessed an opening goal from Nigel Clough cancelled out and then trumped by goals from Teddy Sheringham as the “Spurs” enjoyed an incredibly rare away win at Anfield.
The opening month of August ends with another Reds victory and Liverpool have collected 12 from a possible 15 points in a very bright start to the season.
Liverpool (0) Blackburn Rovers (1), 12th September 1993. This defeat hurt and was the meat in the middle of a run of three consecutive defeats culminating in a painful 2–0 loss in the Merseyside Derby with Everton. I watched the Blackburn game from a seat high up in the Centenary Stand (now Sir Kenny Dalglish stand) and I had a brilliant high up view of Mike Newell’s winning goal. Sadly.
Everton (2) Liverpool (0), 18th September 1993. Attendance at Goodison Park 38,157. New signing Julian Dicks make his debut in an explosive Merseyside Derby of bust ups, fights on the pitch and a Red team at “Civil War” after such a promising start to the season.
Although we didn’t know it at the time on a thundery and lightening streaked evening beside the River Thames at Fulham’s quaint old Craven Cottage home, 13,599 of us were lucky to witness the coming of the Lord, as Robbie Fowler (later known simply as God) made a scoring debut in the Reds 3–1 away win on 22nd September 1993 in the 2nd Round, 1st Leg of the Coca-Cola Cup. Teenage Robbie is picture far right in the bottom middle picture.
Ex Southampton striker Neil Shipperely scored the only goal of a game I have zero recollection of. My abiding memory of a day that saw my continuing run of defeats at Stamford Bridge was of being driven through Richmond Park(?) in London by my Liverpool travelling companion of many years “Steve The Taxi Driver” and wondering if this was actually legal. I have so many tales to tell of my travels with Steve and I’m keeping the good stuff back for future blogs. You always have to leave them wanting more, apparently. Dreadful day out at the “Bridge” as usual.
A God in the making.
3 days later, and in front of only 12,541 at Anfield, Godlike status takes a step nearer as 18 year old Robbie Fowler scores all five in a 5–0 win against Fulham in the 2nd Round, 2nd Leg Coca-Cola Cup tie on 5th October 1993. In the years to come, tens of thousands of Reds have said they were at Anfield on this night, and a vast, vast majority were simply lying through their teeth!.
The Reds round off October with 7 goals in 2 games and progress into the Coca-Cola Cup Quarter Finals and positive places in the league table with home wins over Ipswich and Southampton.
Newcastle United (3) Liverpool (0), 21st November 1993. Attendance at St James’ Park 36,374. A game that would long live in infamy, and not for the superlative hat-trick from Andy Cole in just 30 minutes, but for the tabloid tales those ladies and gentlemen of the press would weave for years after. Of “bungs” and “bribes” and shadowy figures and tape recordings. Regardless, the Black and White stripes of Newcastle were magnificent and the Reds utterly, utterly, utterly dreadful.
Liverpool (2) Aston Villa (1), 28th November 1993. I have no further cuttings of this game, nor a match programme, but I distinctly remember going to this game and of Jamie Redknapp’s winning goal. The tricks of the mind!
Wimbledon (2) Liverpool (2) (Wimbledon won 4–3 on Penalties). But I was very definitely here on this night and along with 11,343 other hardy souls (there was a literal handful of Wimbledon fans), we Reds emptied into a late Selhurst Park night after a dreadful game, extra time and then a rare reverse in a penalty shoot-out. Rare or not, this was dreadful stuff all round.
4 days later I was back in London with “Steve The Taxi Driver” and another tale to tell from our trip to a crazy 3–3 draw with Tottenham Hotspur in front of a Christmas crowd of 31,394 at White Hart Lane. The Reds were behind and then twice in front before Darren Caskey made it 3–3 with 14 minutes to go.
An unimpressed Ian Rush as substitute away at Sheffield United on Boxing Day and a 2–1 away win at Ipswich Town on New Years Day 1994.
Liverpool (3) Manchester United (3), 4th January 1994. A near capacity crowd of 42,795 saw an astonishing game that saw the visitors storm into a 3–0 lead within 23 minutes only for Nigel Clough to score two quick replies and after 38 minutes the score stood at 2–3 in favour of Manchester United. The score stayed this way until 11 minutes from time when Neil Ruddock rose to head a majestic equaliser. I watched this game at home, with my dear old Manchester United supporting Mum (of Robson, Bailey, Wilkins, Cantona, Beckham vintage) sitting in the kitchen below me pacing like a caged lion in the lounge above. We had some strange conversations that night! Bless you Mum.
The end of an era and a saga, and for so many crazy and painful reasons. In 17 January days the Reds played the “Robins” of Bristol City three times, firstly for 65 minutes before a power failure abandoned the game (and Robbie Fowler badly injured), then a 1–1 draw in the rearranged game (£2 per ticket so Steve and I naturally went) and then on 25th January in front of a crowd of 36,720 at Anfield, Bristol City thoroughly deserved their shock 1–0 win. This ended both the tie and Souness’ managerial reign at Liverpool and although it was coming and based on poor team results, it was still a sad way for a legend to leave the club.
But the parting of the ways for a football Manager from a Football Club can be a lucrative business. Now Managers are paid for failure into the tens of millions of pounds.
Everyone’s choice (well certainly mine), Roy Evans is immediately installed as Manager and gains an early league point in his reign in a 2–2 draw away at Norwich City.
The last Merseyside Derby in front of a standing Kop was a Live TV game that so concentrated on Dave Watson’s opening goal for Everton that they virtually missed Ian Rush’s immediate equaliser! A minute before half-time saw Robbie Fowler score what would be the winner, and the last goal scored before a terraced and standing “Kop End”. 13th March 1994.
Liverpool (2) Everton (1), 13th March 1994. Attendance at Anfield 44,281.
Liverpool (2) Chelsea (1) 19th March 1994. Attendance 38,629.
Manchester United (1) Liverpool (0), 30th March 1994. Attendance at Old Trafford 44,751
My second trip of the season to Selhurst Park on Easter Monday, 4th April 1994. The Reds held onto a 64th minute lead from Jamie Redknapp until a last minute equaliser from Gary Elkins. A furious drive home no doubt ensued!
My seventh trip of the season into London with “Steve The Taxi Driver” and a dreadful game it was too. West Ham United scored in the first minute through Martin Allen before Robbie Fowler equalised 12 minutes later. The game drifted nowhere until Ian Rush scored the winner with a couple of minutes to go.
“The Kop’s Last Stand”, 30th April 1994.
I was incredibly lucky to be within that morass of Red warmth and humanity. It was an incredible day. The pre-game reception for Kenny Dalglish as past players were introduced to an Anfield crowd of 44,339 was deafening, and suffice to say I wasn’t the only one swaying with eyes full of tears.
Want to play an interactive game? Trace your finger down the spiral spine until just under half way and the first of the two rectangular shaped white banners. The figure mostly obscured between the white banner and spiral is your humble narrator, resplendent in a retro 1965 FA Cup Final shirt! It’s a claim to fame and I’m clinging to it proudly.
Liverpool (0) Norwich City (1), 30th April 1994. Attendance at Anfield 44,339. It was highly appropriate on such an occasion that a wonder goal, a truly spectacular wonder goal, would be scored at the “Kop End” and the Reds would lose. And lose they did. But to a wonder goal from Jeremy Goss that the Kop applauded (almost) as though it was for their Reds on a day that I hope the memories of which I have will never, ever leave me.
Cuttings from multiple “Souvenir Editions” Part 1
Cuttings from multiple “Souvenir Editions” Part 2
Cuttings from the “Souvenir Edition” of the Liverpool Echo. Part 1
Cuttings from the “Souvenir Edition” of the Liverpool Echo. Part 2
Cuttings from the “Souvenir Edition” of the Liverpool Echo. Part 3
Cuttings from the “Souvenir Edition” of the Liverpool Echo. Part 4 (and my favourite all time Liverpool banner).
4 further games attended, but no cuttings. (See my blog “A Lifetime of Southampton Away” for the story behind the Southampton match programme pictured top right). After a season of such highs and lows the Reds finished a lowly 8th in the League table and a giant 32 points behind runaway winners Manchester United. The Reds lost four times as many league games as their nearest and fiercest rivals. It was a chasm that would take many years to close.
I sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed this slightly longer than usual ramble along footballing memory lane and the scraps from my books and the beautiful programmes hidden away in dusty boxes. If so, please do consider the similar, loving treatment applied to the other season reviews as seen through my scrapbooks below and my special edition of “A Lifetime of Southampton Away”:
Thank you to www.twitter.com for this magnificent comparison picture of The Kop End and now The Kop Stand. It’ll always be “The Kop End” to me! And thank you for reading!
