Aye, It Was Shanks’ Club First” – Bob Paisley Remembers

Article by Jerry.

Aye… y’know, I still think about him. Shanks. There’ll never be another like him, will there?

When he came to Liverpool in ’59, the place were knackered, really. Second Division, run down, not much goin’ for it. But Bill? He walked in like he owned the place — not in a cocky way, mind — but like he knew what it could be. He had this fire in him, this vision… and by God, did he believe in it.

I was already there, workin’ as physio and doin’ bits of coaching. I liked bein’ in the background, me. I weren’t one for shoutin’ or makin’ speeches. I liked sortin’ the team out, watchin’ tapes, studyin’ players. But Shanks — he was the frontman. The gaffer. You couldn’t help but listen when he spoke. He could talk the hind legs off a donkey and then charm it into runnin’ a marathon for him.

He was passionate, like. Not just about football — about everything. About the club, the city, the people. He said Liverpool was made for him and he was made for Liverpool. And I think he meant it.

We had a good thing goin’ in the Boot Room — me, Reuben, Ronnie, Joe. We talked tactics, had a cuppa, kept things simple. Shanks was the big personality, but he let us get on with our work. He trusted us, and that counted for a lot.

When he suddenly packed it in, in ’74, it floored us all. I remember him sayin’ to me, “It’s your turn now, Bob.” I just stared at him, like, “Eh? Me?” I never chased the spotlight. I liked me tracksuit, not a blazer.

But I couldn’t say no. Not to him. And not to the club. It felt like a duty, y’know? Like I were carryin’ the torch he’d lit. I didn’t want to change everything. We’d built it together. I just wanted to keep it goin’, keep it winnin’.

And we did alright, like. League titles, European Cups… but I never thought of it as my success. Not really. It were all built on what he started. I just added a few bricks.

Even after he’d left, I’d hear his voice in me head before big games. “Don’t complicate it, Bob — it’s a simple game. Pass it properly, defend properly, and don’t forget the people in the stands.”

I miss him, y’know. Still do. He had this way of makin’ you believe. Made the players feel like giants. Made the fans proud. That was his biggest gift — not the trophies, not the fame. It was that he made the people happy.

All I ever wanted to do was keep that goin’.

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