By LFC Vancouver member Ste Speed, 26 August 07.

With Momo Sissoko scoring Liverpool’s 7000th league goal in the 2 - 0 win at Sunderland, I started thinking about some of my all time favourite Reds goals. I started writing them down and before long I had quite a nice list. I then started to think about each goal and came up with my ten favourites. Of course there are many classics to choose from so it was very difficult to come up with just ten for this list. However after a long thought and eliminating some crackers I was able to come up with a list I am happy with and all ten goals bring back great personal memories.

I was born in December 1977 so I’m not including any of the classics from the 1970’s. The earliest goal in my list is from 1987. The first season I fully remember vividly is 1985/86 but I declined to include any strikes from that season. Although Kenny Dalglish’s 20 second wonder goal at Goodison Park almost made it in. I own many video tapes and DVD’s featuring so many classic goals from earlier than 1987 but I have declined to include any goals that don’t have personal memories attached to them. There are many truly superb strikes (many from Terry McDermott and Graeme Souness) that didn’t make my top ten purely because I just don’t remember them at the time.

I didn’t include any goals from Ian Rush in my list. There was a few that I considered such as his goals in the F.A. Cup Finals versus Everton. While there are tons of memorable and important goals from Rushie I wasn’t able to include any in my top ten. I make no apologies for including two goals from Robbie Fowler and to be honest I could have written a separate article with my top ten Fowler goals! I’ve also included two from Steven Gerrard. I’m sure you’ll be able to guess which two I’ve chosen and why. There was another goal from Gerrard that I tried to include but I couldn’t dislodge any of the others from my list. This was his long range effort against Middlesbrough in April 2005, which I think is probably his greatest ever goal. It meant so much to me because it was the last goal I saw in person at Anfield before I moved to Canada just five days later.

I’m sure you will all have your own personal favourite all time Liverpool goals and this is a subject that is open to great debate. Some of your own favourites may be included in my list and some of them won’t. You may even think that some of the players listed scored better goals than the ones that I have chosen. A person’s age can also determine their own personal favourites too. I’m sure if my dad made a list of his favourites most of them would be from the 60’s and 70’s when he stood on The Kop week in and week out. Whatever you think of my list, I’m sure that you’ll agree that these are all superb goals, each with their own special memories.

The list is in date order starting with the earliest to the most recent. I decided not to rank them because it was just too difficult. Each goal was important for its own reason and all deserve an equal billing. So here we go it’s time to start my personal top ten favourites beginning with a classic from when I was nine years old.

1: John Barnes – VS Queens Park Rangers, September 1987

Barnes had joined in the summer of 1987 for £900,000 along with Peter Beardsley who was a club record of £1.9 million. As we all know they turned out to be two of the best summer signings in the history of the club. I shudder to think how much it would cost to buy two players of this quality today.

Due to a collapsed sewer under The Kop, John Barnes Anfield debut was postponed until September. His efforts on the road led to great anticipation amongst the fans as word of his displays on the wing began to be circulated. When he finally made his debut against Oxford Utd we weren’t disappointed as Barnes played well and scored. It was in his next home game against QPR that he scored my favourite of his many superb goals for Liverpool.

We won 4 – 0 that day and Barnes scored two superb goals. His first was a beautiful run into the box and a one two pass before firing past David Seaman. It was his second goal that day that I’ve chosen. I still remember the first time I saw this goal on Match of the Day that night. Every time I see this goal I’m transported back to being a kid again and it continues to impress me again and again. Barnes won the ball inside his own half and then went on a fantastic run towards the goal. As he got to the edge of the box he jinked past a couple of defenders before slotting the ball home with perfection in front of The Kop. I believe that it was this performance that made him a true Kop Idol, which he remains to this day.

2: John Aldridge – VS Arsenal, January 1988

For my next choice I’ve gone with another superb goal from the 1987/88 season. However unlike my previous choice this goal was the result of superb teamwork. There were so many highlights from this season and so many phenomenal goals, many of which came from the trio of Aldridge, Beardsley and Barnes. Even if one of those three didn’t actually score the goal themselves it’s a very high chance they were heavily involved in its creation. This goal is a great example of the teamwork, heart and desire that we showed in that season.

During a goal scoring chance in front of The Kop the ball was cleared away towards the crowd by an Arsenal defender. Steve McMahon and Tony Adams both gave chase with McMahon arriving first and trapping the ball on the touchline. His running took him into the advertising boards and within a split second he managed to turn around and get the ball past the oncoming Adams. He carried the ball another few yards before passing to Peter Beardsley on the edge of the area. Beardsley then crossed the ball low for John Aldridge to slide in and tap it into the back of the net.

3: Robbie Fowler – VS Aston Villa, March 1996

The Growler scored two goals within the first few minutes of this game. His second goal from this match is pretty famous and is the goal I’ve chosen next in my top ten. This is possibly my favourite ever Fowler goal. He scored loads of spectacular goals for Liverpool but this goal has always stood out for me.

It was away at Villa Park and Robbie came out flying straight from the kick-off. He scored really on and then minutes later he added a second with an absolute beauty. I’m sure you’ve seen this goal many times. He got the ball way outside the area with his back to goal. He then cheekily nutmegged, Steve Staunton with a back heel, leaving him standing like a ghost, before smashing the ball into the top corner. That game was televised live on Sky on a Sunday afternoon and I had stupidly booked a driving lesson at the same time as the game. Fortunately my instructor was fifteen minutes late so I didn’t miss the Fowler blitz! When I told my driving instructor, who was an Evertonian, what had just happened, he had to come into the house and see the score with his own eyes!

4: Stan Collymore – VS Newcastle United, April 1996

This goal wasn’t as visually spectacular as my previous choice but it almost lifted the roof off Anfield when it went in. It was the winning goal in the classic 4 – 3 win later dubbed ‘The Game of the Decade.’

At the time Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle where involved in a battle with Man Utd for the Premiership title. Newcastle had somehow managed to blow a huge lead in the league and arrived at Anfield on a Monday night at a crucial stage in the season. My dad used to play darts on a Monday night so I remember being stuck watching in the spare room at my parent’s house, sat on a hard wooden chair watching on a dodgy portable T.V.

Fowler and Collymore both scored two goals each in this back and forth epic. It was Collymore’s second in injury time that I’ve chosen for my top ten purely because of how much it meant at the time. I remember falling out of the chair and running into the street with excitement. I’ll never forget Keegan’s shell shocked face as his head went down with the realisation of what had just happened.

5: Gary McAllister – VS Everton, April, 2001

When we signed the ageing Gary McAllister on a free transfer nobody would have believed just how important he would be to the side as we raced to the treble. During the latter stages of the season he seemed to score in every game and some of those goals were immensely important. He scored the winning penalty (past a young Pepe Reina) at Anfield in the UEFA Cup semi final against Barcelona. He repeated this with another penalty in the final against Alaves, a game in which he was also the Man of the Match. He also took the crucial free kick in extra time that led to the golden goal that won us the trophy.

The goal I have chosen from McAllister is his long range free kick in the dying seconds of a cracking derby at Goodison Park. I remember watching this game with my dad at a neighbour’s home where we had gone for drinks because it was on a long weekend. Incidentally these particular neighbour’s were all rabid Evertonian’s so the atmosphere was great and the banter flowing in a hilarious style that only Scousers do so well.

It was an entertaining game and it looked to be heading for a 2 – 2 draw when we got a free kick in the dying seconds. Surely this was to be our last chance to snatch the victory. Everyone in the room was expecting McAllister to float the ball in to the box because it was so far away from the goal. However I saw the look in his eye as he put the ball down and said; “he’s gonna hit this”. My prediction was correct as it sailed straight into the bottom corner of the Everton goal. The Liverpool fans, the bench and the players went absolutely beserk and me and my dad matched them well as we trampled over the Bluenose’s furniture wagging our fingers in their faces! This was an extremely crucial win as we needed every point we could get on our chase for that crucial third Champions League place. This victory, and that goal, gave us that extra bit of confidence we needed for the exciting climax to the treble season.

6: Michael Owen – VS Arsenal, F.A. Cup Final, May 2001

The 2001 F.A. Cup Final is often called ‘The Owen Final’ thanks to his two late goals to win the trophy for Liverpool.

Arsenal had battered us for the majority of the game and were deservedly 1 – 0 in the lead with just minutes remaining. Unfortunately for Arsenal these were the days before Michael Owen became injury prone and was an incredible match winner, especially in big games. He scored from a corner to level the game and then came the winner with one of my favourite goals ever.

My mates and I barely had time to discuss the first goal when Berger hit a long ball over Arsenal’s midfield. We saw Owen sprinting onto it but thought that clearly Adams and Dixon easily had him covered. How wrong we were as the entire season flashed before our eyes when the ball crept past Seaman and into the corner of the net. Oh my god, the house went insane as my mate Pat and I burst out the patio doors and into the garden, shirts flying in the air, dancing in jubilation. Incredible scenes that never seemed to end as the music was blasted the cans of ale were cracked open and the party just went on and on.

7: Robbie Fowler – VS Deportivo Alaves, UEFA Cup Final, May 2001

My next choice was another goal from another dramatic cup final played just four days after the F.A. Cup Final. This was in the incredible 5 – 4 win over Alaves in the UEFA Cup Final, which I watched in a crowded pub in West Derby Village, Merseyside with my dad and his mates.

Twenty minutes to go with the score locked at 3 – 3 and onto the pitch to replace the hapless Emile Heskey comes Fowler. Loud cheers and God chants mixed with adults only insults directed at Heskey go up round the pub. The arrival of The Growler combined with Alaves taking off their most dangerous player Javi Moreno, seemed to give us a second wind as we began to create more opportunities. Then the ball fell to McAllister who played a tremendous ball through the Alaves defense. Fowler picked up the ball on the edge of the box and we all shouted for him to pass to Owen who was free in the area, instead Fowler decided to shoot and absolutely buried it in the corner. The pub descended into absolute mayhem. My dad was in the bathroom at that moment and came running out the bathroom in time for the replay describing scenes of men peeing on themselves in a rush to see what all the screaming was about. My own reaction was to stand still on the spot, arms in the air screaming “Fowler, Fowler, Fowler” over and over again for about a minute as fellow fans shook me out of it and a lady standing in front of me stared like I’d just farted in front of The Queen!

8: Steven Gerrard – VS Olympiakos, December 2004

I was tempted to include the header in Istanbul because it was the catalyst for the greatest comeback in history. However I had to go with his cracker against Olympiakos in the final group game. I chose this goal because without it there would have been no Istanbul and possibly no more Gerrard at the end of that season. I was waiting for my flight back to Liverpool, having spent the previous two years globe trotting around Australasia and Thailand. I was sitting in the airport bar nursing the one drink I could afford and a plate of fries a generous fellow passenger had bought me. I was in my Liverpool shirt surrounded by American businessmen just watching ESPN with no sound. I couldn’t believe my luck when the Liverpool VS Olympiakos game came on the T.V, as I had arrived at the airport several hours early for my flight due to lack of funds. I asked for the volume to be turned up and sat back to watch an incredible match.

I remember my loud, boisterous enthusiasm throughout the game began to attract the attention of the American businessmen who began to watch it with me. Just like all Reds fans around the world my chest was full of butterflies when the clock was ticking down and the score stood at 2 – 1 which wasn’t enough to qualify for the knockout stages.

When Gerrard’s winner flew in, it was one of the most exciting moments of my life. I jumped out of my seat and ran around the bar like a lunatic before exchanging high fives with the American’s. They ended up buying me drinks afterwards because they’d been so entertained by my antics during the game.

I’m not the biggest fan of Andy Gray’s commentary but his scream of; “You beauty, what a hit son”, will go down as one of the best ever for any Liverpool goal. Unfortunately Gray kind of ruined the moment a few days later when he apologised for his comment in his Everton column in the Liverpool Echo.

9: Luis Garcia – VS Juventus, April 2005

Lil’ Luis was a frustrating player at times but nobody can deny that he was a man who truly shone on the big occasions, especially in European games. His goals on the run to Istanbul in 2005 are truly the stuff of legend. Without doubt his finest goal for Liverpool was the stunning volley against Juventus. In fact this goal was recently voted his best ever goal in a recent poll on the official Liverpool website.

I remember being at work and getting a text off my friend when the draw was made. My first thought was that we probably didn’t have much chance but it would be no shame to lose to Juventus. At that point I was already overjoyed to have beaten Bayer Leverkusen in the previous round, thanks in part to three Garcia goals.

Garcia’s goal capped off an incredible first half that night against the giants of Turin. Sami Hyppia gave us the lead with a lovely volley from a corner. In the process winning my dad £200 after he placed a £10 bet at odds of 20 – 1 on Hyppia to score the first goal. Then came Luis’s moment of history with an unstoppable volley that flew past Buffon and straight into the top corner. It was a goal that deserved to win any game and it was at that precise moment that I started to believe that we might actually be capable of winning the trophy that year.

10: Steven Gerrard - VS West Ham United, F.A. Cup Final, May 2006

The first F.A. Cup Final at the Millenium Stadium, Cardiff, is known as the ‘Owen Final’ and the last one is known as the ‘Gerrard Final.’

Stevie G scored two fantastic goals in what is probably the best ever F.A. Cup Final. His first was to level the game at 2 – 2. He latched onto a knock down from Crouch to volley an unstoppable thunderbolt into the top corner. But the best was still to come.

With the ninetieth minute rapidly approaching, West Ham kicked the ball out of play when Cisse went down injured. We immediately passed the ball back to the West Ham keeper, Hislop, who proceeded to give us the ball straight back. The ball suddenly fell to Gerrard about thirty yards from goal. Just minutes earlier Stevie had been lying on his back with cramp getting stretched by Riise. It was now do or die as Gerrard went for goal with a first time shot which would surely be the last chance of the game. At the time it was almost like watching in slow motion as the ball flew into the bottom corner of the goal. It was like one of those cliché’d sporting moments with the winning goal/basket/touchdown/home run in the last minute filmed in slow motion. I still can’t believe that it went in. It was an amazing goal and I truly believe that Steven Gerrard is the only player that could have done it.

Despite suffering cramp Gerrard was able to score in the penalty shoot out and help us win the trophy. His second goal in open play that day surely must be ranked as the greatest goal ever in an F.A. Cup Final.

What do you think? Give Ste your comments at steSpeed [at] lfcvancouver.com.

By LFC Vancouver member Keith Perkins, 30 August 07.

It’s been another exciting week in Liverpool’s continuing European adventure. First, we completed the routine demolition of Toulouse on Tuesday night with an emphatic 4-0 win at Anfield, for a convincing 5-0 aggregate score. It looked like it was something of a stroll for the Reds, without even breaking into much of a sweat. That was all the more impressive considering we were without both Gerrard and Carragher, and took advantage of our squad depth to give several players a run out. Then, last night, it was the draw for the group stage, with top seed Liverpool being slotted into Group A along with FC Porto, Olympique de Marseille, and Besiktas JK. That gives us a nice balance of the novel with the familiar for this season’s European campaign.

Besiktas are the unknown quantity in this group, as we have never been drawn against them before. But, it won’t be a complete trip into the unknown since Besiktas is one of three clubs in Istanbul (along with Galatasaray SK and Fenerbahçe SK). That means another journey to the Turkish capital, which is a trip that has given us some mixed but ultimately satisfying results over the last few years. Also, there is a definite Liverpool connection with the club through previous managers Gordon Milne (1987 to 1993) and John Toshack (1997-1999). Those two former Reds brought a few trophies to the club with three Turkish League Championships (and two runners-up) as well as three Turkish Cups (and one runner-up).

The club (nicknamed Kara Katallar – The Black Eagles) was founded in 1903, during the days of the Ottoman Empire and became the first officially registered Turkish sports club. Their full name is Besiktas Jimnastik Kulübü, or Besiktas Gymnastics club, with branches of the organisation competing over the years in wrestling, boxing, weight-lifting, gymnastics, basketball, volleyball, handball, chess, and of course football. It isn’t clear which (if any) of those other sports will provide them with useful experience, but as they were drawn from the fourth pot then we should be confident that we can prevail no matter what type of game they play. We’ll find out just how good they are when we travel there on October 24th, and then again when they visit us at Anfield on November 6th.

Olympique de Marseille, drawn from the third pot, is a club that we have encountered before. They definitely have experience in Europe having won the Champions League in 1993 with a 1-0 win over Milan, just two years after finishing as runners-up after losing on penalties to Red Star Belgrade in 1991. They were also runners up twice in the UEFA Cup (1999 and 2004) and more recently were winners of the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2005 and 2006.

Their most interesting European matches (as far as we are concerned) were during the 2003-04 season. Liverpool lost out to Marseille in what turned out to be Gerard Houllier’s last European match as Liverpool’s manager. That was in the fourth round, with Marseille progressing all the way to the final where they came up against Valencia. The Spanish side won 2-0 to take the trophy, which was the last European match for Rafa Benitez as Valencia’s manager.

It would be easy to say that we have a definite advantage over Marseille after Rafa was able to lead Valencia to victory over them, giving him and his staff some considerable knowledge of the club that we have to face now. But, we have to remember that they will also have a considerable amount of knowledge of us from former Liverpool players Djibril Cissé and Bolo Zenden. We’ll be welcoming the two ex-Reds to Anfield on October 3rd, with the return match at the Stade Vélodrome on December 11th.

FC (Futebol Clube do) Porto are to be the first of our opponents, and we begin this season’s European odyssey with a trip to the Estádio do Dragão (Dragon Stadium) on September 18th. The return match at Anfield is on November 28th, which could be the decider between first and second place in the group. They were drawn from pot 2, where they were ranked based on their past success in European competition. Twenty years ago in 1987 they won their first of two European Cups, 2-1 over Bayern Munich, and also won the UEFA Super Cup with a 2-0 aggregate win over Ajax. Those were followed with the Intercontinental Cup, winning 1-0 in extra time over Penarol. One thing that Porto have in common with Besiktas is that they are also a sporting empire, with associate clubs competing in handball, basketball, and roller hockey.

We came up against them in 2001 in the quarter-final of the UEFA Cup, where we won 2-0 on aggregate on our way to winning the trophy. Two seasons later in 2003, Porto were progressing in the UEFA Cup while we were being humbled in the Champions League group stage by Basle, and also of course by Valencia (who were managed by Rafa). That knocked us out of the Champions League and put us into the UEFA Cup third round, where we later lost out to Celtic, who in turn lost in the final to Porto. That was under their new manager Jose Mourinho who led them on to win the Champions League the following season in 2004. Since then, they have been in the Champions League each successive season, but under different managers following Mourinho’s departure in 2004 they have failed to progress beyond the second round.

Now that we know a little more about our opposition, it’s still difficult to say whether this draw has been kind to us or not. When we see that we have two former European Champions to overcome it might not look so easy; but after seeing the performances of our squad so far this season we have to be confident of success. This is just the beginning of what we believe will be a long and successful European campaign; and with what we’ve seen recently, we can look forward to proving that the road to Moscow is paved with goals.

What do you think? Give Keith your comments at keith [at] lfcvancouver.com.

By LFC Vancouver member Ste Speed, 28 August 07.

I’m trying not to get too carried away but it’s proving to be very difficult at the moment. I think we currently look the best we’ve been since Kenny Dalglish was manager. We have an outstanding squad and everybody is playing well. The new signings have gelled instantly with the team and have come out flying. In turn the great performance’s from the new lads has spurred on the existing players to up their own games in order to try and keep their places.

The performance against Toulouse was absolutely superb and was further proof of how strong our current squad is. We now have two players for every position and four awesome strikers to choose from. It really is mouth watering when you think about it. When you consider that against Toulouse we were missing Carragher and Gerrard and playing youngsters like Leto and Leiva, it’s just further proof of what I was just saying about the depth of the squad.

After a poor second season at Liverpool, Momo Sissoko seems to have found his form again. I’m not sure if it’s the pressure of challenging for his place now that Gerrard is back in the centre, but Momo looks quality again. He was the man of the match against Sunderland, where he capped off a fine display with his first Liverpool goal. He was excellent against Toulouse, winning the ball and passing with superb vision. I think he’s completed more passes in the last two games than he did for the entire second half of last season. It’s great to see him back.

Peter Crouch hasn’t had much playing time so far this season, but against Toulouse he proved once again that he will score goals whenever he’s on the pitch. He now has eight goals in his last ten European starts, which is a phenomenal statistic. His goal on Tuesday night was excellent, and he showed how deadly his long legs are to reach the cross before the defender. He was unlucky not to get another in the second half with a fantastic piece of skill where he controlled the ball in the air with his chest and brought it down with his leg, before shooting over the bar.

Dirk Kuyt also had a fine game against Toulouse. As usual he worked extremely hard and was a constant threat. Throughout the second half I kept on willing him to score as nobody deserved a goal more than him. When his deflected shot hit the crossbar I began to think it just wasn’t going to happen. Then in the last three minutes he scored two outstanding goals. The first came from a nice one-two with Babel and the second from an excellent through ball from Benayoun. It was great to see two of our new signings involved in both of Kuyts goals.

There have been whispers from his agent that Benayoun isn’t happy not starting every game. However it didn’t look like he was unhappy against Toulouse. He had a really good game where he was creative and got stuck in. Ryan Babel made another cameo appearance and once again he made an impact. He is an absolutely fabulous talent and it’s frightening just how amazing he might be in a year or two. He really could be as good as Thierry Henry.

Sami Hyppia stepped up to replace the injured Jamie Carragher and took over the captain’s armband. He was an absolute rock and led from the back. His performance was further proof that he is far from finished at the top level. He was outstanding, fully in control at all times and brought the ball forward with great control and passed the ball intelligently. He took his goal well and from the power of the header it’s hard to believe he’d broken his nose just three days earlier.

If we continue playing this well in the coming weeks we will have no problem achieving maximum points. It’s really frustrating that there is an international break next week while we have a momentum going. However it’s an extra week for Gerrard and Carragher to gain fitness without missing games. If I were Derby County I would just concede the three points now because there is strong chance they will get battered on Saturday.

It’s been another great week for Liverpool and the future is looking excellent. We have a series of very winnable games coming up and I have a feeling we have a lot of smiling and cheering in the near future to look forward to.

What do you think? Give Ste your comments at steSpeed [at] lfcvancouver.com.

By LFC Vancouver member Keith Perkins, 12 July 07.

There must be a very short list of players that have played twice for one club. One that comes to mind is Peter Beardsley, who came to Liverpool from Newcastle, and then later spent the last few good seasons of his career with the Magpies. An even shorter list would be of Liverpool players who left and then later returned. One famous example is Ian Rush who left Liverpool at the end of the 1986/87 season to try his luck with Juventus, but returned after only one season and went on to continued success with the Reds. Steve Staunton would be on an even shorter list as he played twice each for two different clubs - Liverpool and Aston Villa - as if both clubs had agreed to take turns in using his talents for a few years at a time.

Stephen (Steve) Staunton was born in Drogheda, Republic of Ireland on January 19th, 1969. As a young lad, he was an accomplished all-round athlete, playing Association Football for Dundalk F.C., and Gaelic Football for County Louth U-21’s. As a seventeen year old with Dundalk, he was spotted by a Liverpool scout and soon after he met with Kenny Dalglish to sign a contract with Liverpool in the summer of 1986.

It was something of a slow start as he began honing his skills with the reserves. Part of this learning process included a loan spell of eight games with second division Bradford City, who were chasing promotion, before returning to the reserves in his second season. Finally, after those two seasons, he made his first team debut on September 17th, 1988 as a substitute in a 1-1 draw with Tottenham at Anfield. His performance in that match was impressive enough for him to be on the bench again three days later as Liverpool faced Arsenal at Highbury in the semi final of the Centenary Trophy. In that match he came on as a substitute and scored Liverpool’s only goal in a 2-1 loss. Another substitute appearance in a 3-1 win away to Southampton was then followed with his first starting place in a home League Cup match against Walsall. It was only a month later when he made his International debut for Jack Charlton’s Ireland side in a 4-0 friendly win over Tunisia, even though he had yet to play a full ninety minutes for Liverpool. At this point, it must have been obvious that his career was well and truly under way, and so it proved as the following couple of seasons saw success (and medals) coming his way.

Liverpool’s central defence was well anchored in those days by Alan Hansen, but when he was briefly out of the side with an injury, Gary Ablett was moved to the centre which opened up the left back spot for Steve Staunton. From that time on, the position became his for the remainder of the season. Liverpool were on their way to another League and FA Cup double, but all of that was forgotten on April 15th 1989. Steve attended many of the funerals and comforted bereaved families as the city mourned. When the semi-final against Nottingham Forest was replayed, he put in a man-of-the-match performance to help Liverpool reach the final against Everton. The 3-2 extra time win (he was substituted at the beginning of extra time) gave him his first major medal as an FA Cup winner. Disappointment soon followed as Arsenal beat Liverpool in the last game of the season to prevent the double, and thus robbing Steve Staunton of a League Champion’s medal. He didn’t have to wait too long to make up for that though, as he played a significant part in Liverpool’s League success the following season.

The 1989/90 season may have been the best period of all in Steve Staunton’s career. By this time he was showing his versatility by playing in a variety of roles, from all four positions at the back, to midfield, and sometimes up front. He even scored a hat trick in a League Cup match against Wigan in September ’89 when he was a substitute for Ian Rush. At the end of that season, he picked up a well earned medal as Liverpool won their eighteenth League Championship.

His international career also blossomed during the same period, and it was no surprise that Jack Charlton selected him as part of the squad to travel to Italy for the 1990 World Cup Finals. The first match of the contest must have seemed a bit like a Liverpool inter-squad match as he lined up for Ireland alongside fellow Reds John Aldridge, Ronnie Whelan, and Ray Houghton. Opposite them for England were John Barnes, Steve McMahon, and Peter Beardsley. That match ended 1-1, and although Ireland were unable to beat Egypt, they were able to play out a 0-0 draw against Holland and went through to the knock out stage, beating Romania and losing out by a single goal to host Italy in the quarter final. Unfortunately, that was to be the peak of his career, where at the age of just twenty one (and the youngest player in the Ireland team that summer) he played in all five of Irelands’ games.

When he reported back to Anfield for the 1990/91 season, he could not have known that the turmoil to come would be the beginning of the end of his days with Liverpool. By the end of the season, after Kenny Dalglish’s shock resignation in February of 1991, Graeme Souness became manager and many changes were in the air.

Liverpool were allowed to return to European competition (following the ban imposed after Heysel) for the 1991/92 season in the UEFA Cup, but some new rules that had been brought in were not good news for any non-English player in the squad. The governing body of UEFA had decided that no more than three foreign players could be fielded for European matches. Graeme Souness therefore decided that Staunton was no longer in the plans for the future and so was sold to Aston Villa for £1,100,000. That’s a good return on the initial outlay of £20,000 paid to Dundalk a few years earlier, and many supporters saw it as a good business move by the manager.

Staunton soon settled in at Villa Park, making an impressive debut by scoring a goal against Sheffield Wednesday. Only a season later, he was joined by two more former Liverpool players as Dean Saunders and Ray Houghton also fell under the Souness axe. The three of them together were League Cup winners in 1994, which culminated with a 3-1 win over Manchester United. That now gave Steve Staunton all three domestic competition medals, and he went on to win one more when Aston Villa beet Leeds United in the 1996 League Cup Final (although he was an unused substitute in the final match).

The rules that had forced clubs to carefully count their non-English players had been challenged in court, and subsequently defeated, in 1995. The new ruling abolished quotas of non European Union citizens for any EU clubs. It also allowed more freedom of movement of players, including free transfers from club to club at the end of a player’s contract. Such a “Bosman free transfer” saw Steve Staunton returning to Liverpool in the summer of 1998 (following several years of speculation), under joint managers Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier. This second period at Liverpool lasted two seasons, at the end of which he was told that he would be allowed to leave on a free transfer at the end of the 1999/2000 season. The early part of the following season was spent on loan at Crystal Palace for a total of six games before being recalled to Liverpool for what would become his last ever match in a Liverpool shirt. That was as a second-half substitute for Djimi Traore in a UEFA Cup match against Olympiakos on 23rd of November 2000. That made a total of 147 appearances and 6 goals for Liverpool.

Aston Villa supporters were not pleased when Steve Staunton had effectively thumbed his nose at them, during what turned out to be his last season at Villa Park, by stating that he would welcome a move back to Anfield. Following that transfer, when Liverpool played a Premier League match at Villa Park in October of 1999, the Villa fans gave him a lot of stick and were delighted to see him sent off after an hour of play. There was much hilarity for the Villa supporters, but the last laugh must have been on them as the object of their derision was soon to be on his way back to the Midlands.

In December 2000, he returned for a second spell at Aston Villa, playing in 14 league games to end the season. The two years that he now spent with the Midlands club were not as successful as previously, although he was able to end his Villa career with a total of 350 appearances and 16 goals (all of which came during the first spell). From there it was a free transfer to Coventry City for two seasons, followed by a move into management as player/assistant manager at Walsall.

Meanwhile, from 1991 when he left Liverpool for the first time, his international career continued to progress. He played in all of the Republic of Ireland’s four matches at the USA 1994 World Cup, and was regularly selected over the years even though they did not qualify for Euro 96 in England, or for the 1998 World Cup in France. As Ireland made their way through to the 2002 World Cup, Steve Staunton was named team captain. The 1-1 draw with Germany in the group stage was a very special occasion as he made his 100th international appearance. Ireland made it through to the second round, losing to Spain on penalties. It was shortly after that defeat that Steve Staunton decided to end his international career, with a record 102 caps and as the only player to have played in all 13 of Ireland’s World Cup Finals games.

Surprisingly to many, he was appointed as the manager of the Republic of Ireland in January 2006. The critics were soon quiet after his first match in charge ended with a 3-0 win over Sweden. But, that was followed by a string of defeats, and then a few better results to keep them in contention for Euro 2008 (currently in a three way tie with Germany and the Czech Republic).

At the end of it all, as Steve Staunton looks back on his Liverpool career, he can be justifiably proud of his contribution to the club. He picked up a League Champion’s medal, an FA Cup medal, and twice won Charity Shield medals. He can also be proud of the fact that Roy Evans rated him highly enough to bring him back for a second spell with Liverpool when his first stint at Aston Villa came to an end. Unfortunately, for some reason he was never the most popular player at Anfield during his first spell, and even less so during the second. No matter what the statistics or the history of Liverpool players may show, it was not enough for him to be recognised in the list of 100 Players Who Shook The Kop, having been kept out by the likes of more popular candidates such as Erik Meijer and Nigel Clough. Still, he easily makes it on my list of Liverpool Heroes, even though he is just one more that seems to have been forgotten by most.

What do you think? Give Keith your comments at keith [at] lfcvancouver.com.

Standings as of 30 August 07.

Rank	Member	Points
1	Dennis	8
2	Ste	7
3	Kevin	5
4	Pat	2
5	Keith	1
5	Andy	1
5	Glenn	1

To enter the members contest see the rules below.

RULES:

• Only open to paid LFC Vancouver Members.
• You list the names of the players you think will start the next LFC match.
• You must submit your list to lfcvancouver [at] gmail.com at least 12 hours before kick-off.
• This contest will include every match that LFC plays this season.
• The member(s) that correctly guess the starting XI will be awarded 5 points.
• At the end of the season the player with the most points will win the prize.
• What is the prize? It is a surprise!
• The standings will be included in each week’s newsletter.

Scoring System:

• 11 Correct picks = 5 points.
• 10 Correct picks = 3 points.
• 9 Correct picks = 1 point.
• 0-8 Correct picks = 0 points.

YNWA/JFT 96,

Andy Neumann