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T.V. Williams, the late President of Liverpool Football Club, is famously remembered as the man
who courted and wooed Bill Shankly across the Penines and into Anfield in 1959. What is less
generally well appreciated is that 'TV' had also played a decisive role just five years earlier in
the cajoling of an initially reluctant Bob Paisley into throwing his lot in with the club as a
member of the backroom staff.
At the end of the 1953-54 season Liverpool were disastrously relegated from top flight football and Bob Paisley was one of a number of the club's players who had decided to call it a day. At the age of 35, Paisley was weighing up whether or not to go back to the north-east to resume life as a brick layer or opening a fruit and veg shop somewhere. Deep down however, he harboured ambitions as a physiotherapist. He had studied a correspondence course in the subject and with help from Williams and his friend John Moores had been able to visit local hospitals to sit in on operations and observe medical practices. Williams was delighted to offer Paisley the job of reserve team manager. Bob himself observed 'I'd always had an interest in physiotherapy and psychology. The physio side probably stemmed from the knocks I got as a player. I found that valuable later on. It stood me in good stead. If I was pinned down I'd say that was my greatest asset. I could speak to players and give them examples of injuries and how they heal.' Don Welsh was first team manager and continued to struggle as Liverpool adjusted to life in Division 2. The club suffered it's worst ever defeat, 9-1 at Birmingham, on their way to an 11th place finish, the lowest in the club's history. Meanwhile, after finding his feet in his new role, Bob Paisley's reserves began to make pleasing headway. In his second term at the helm Paisley guided the reserves to runners-up spot in the Central League, second only to the brilliant 'Busby Babes' of Manchester United. The following season they were to take the title for the first time in the club's history. Welsh had begun to turn around the fortunes of the senior players too after their ropey introduction to life at the lower levels, steering the club to 3rd place in 1955-56 and missing promotion by a whisker. It was too little too late however, and he became the first manager ever to be sacked by Liverpool. Phil Taylor, who had quit playing at the same time as Paisley, moved up from first team coach to become the new manager. A series of near miss promotion attempts ensued as the 1950s turned into a totally frustrating decade for the Reds. In 1957 the club again finished 3rd and the following year it was 4th even though the points total was greater. Season 1958-59 began badly with four defeats in the opening five games. A humiliating 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Bill Shankly's Huddersfield quickly followed but the tide soon turned. A winning streak of 14 victories in 16 games saw the team leap up the table and begin to look like promotion prospects once again but the momentum was well and truly crushed by one of the most catastrophic defeats in the club's history. Liverpool went out of the FA Cup at the hands of non-league Worcester City courtesy of a 2-1 scoreline. The league season was to end limply with another disappointing 4th place. To make matter worse, the playing career of the great Billy Liddell was now drawing to a close. |
Let the revolution begin !
Shanks, Bob, Ronnie Moran, Joe Fagan, Reuben Bennett |
Liverpool Reserves - Central League Champs 1956
2nd from the right, back row is Keith Burkinshaw 1st left, front row is Bobby Campbell |