David Peace - Red or Dead

I do remember, said Bill Shankly. And I remember you, son. I remember you very well. But it was the least I could do, son. The very least I could do. To thank you, son. To thank you for supporting Liverpool Football Club. So thank you again, son …

And again, one of the men said, But you know you are a genius, don’t you? You are a genius, Bill?

And now Bill Shankly shook his head. And Bill Shankly put his hand upon the shoulder of this man. And Bill Shankly said, Thank you, son. Thank you. But I am not a genius. I have only ever tried to be an honest man. And to make you proud. And make you happy.

Not only in the summer. Not these days. But in the autumn. And in the winter and in the spring. These days. Bill and Ness would drive up to Blackpool. In all seasons, in all weathers. Or if Ness did not fancy the drive up to Blackpool. If Ness was busy. Bill would call a friend. And Bill and his friend would drive up to Blackpool. In all seasons, in all weathers. Or if his friends did not fancy the drive up to Blackpool. If his friends were busy. Bill would still go. Bill would still drive up to Blackpool. In all seasons, in all weathers. Bill parked the car by the Norbreck Castle Hotel. Bill crossed the tram tracks to the front. Bill walked along the Queen’s Promenade. And Bill sat on the front, on the promenade. In a deckchair or in a shelter. Bill sucked a lozenge, a Fisherman’s Friend. And Bill stared out at the sea, the Irish Sea. In all seasons, in all weathers. In a shelter or in a deckchair. Bill thought about the seasons that had been, Bill thought about the seasons to come. The things he had done and the things he would do. In all seasons, in all weathers. In his deckchair or in the shelter. Bill sucked a lozenge, a Fisherman’s Friend. Bill stared out at the sea, the Irish Sea. And Bill said, I only wish I could start all over again. Oh yes …

I mean, I see some of these managers. I hear some of these modern managers. And they talk like gods. But they haven’t won a thing. Not a bloody thing! And so I know, some of these top jobs. I could sit and do them with my eyes shut. With my bloody eyes shut!

Basic things, you know? Basic discipline, basic routines. The initial training period should take a long time. Oh yes. About five and a half weeks, I reckon. But you need to be cautious in these initial stages. You can’t be going out and tearing people to bloody pieces in the first three or four days. Oh no. You don’t put them in the sand or in the hills or on the road. You train them on the grass where they play. And you take it easy. I mean, if you saw Liverpool training in the early stages of my day, you might think they were being lazy. But the build-up was gradual, you see? Relying on experience, relying on knowledge. Our experience and our knowledge. Oh yes …

I mean, I would never ask players to stretch their legs until they were ready. Oh no. Injuries can be caused if the initial period is wrong. If a man breaks down two or three months into the season, it might well be because of his initial training. His initial training might well have been wrong, you see? It has to be a patient approach. Yes. It should be a very patient approach. I mean, Ray Clemence once pulled a muscle kicking balls too early into his training. It affected him for a long time. And he eventually missed a few games. And it cost us the League that season. I really believe that. I really do.

So I mean, you don’t want to let them sprint too early. Or kick the ball too early. Oh no. Caution is the key. Patience is the thing. You train hard, yes. But only when you are ready. Cautiously, patiently. You build up the training, you build up the players. Always with an eye on the details, on the little things. Oh yes. The details and the little things. I mean, during serious training. When the season is in full swing, when the players are seriously training. Then the players will sweat. Oh yes, of course they will. And they must, they must. But they must still wear a sweater or a top to train in. Particularly if it is a cold day. Because they need that sweater or that top to cover their kidneys. And if you haven’t worn one, you must put one on as soon as training is finished. To keep you warm, you must. Oh yes …

I mean, instead of stripping, training and showering at Melwood. And eating there and then going home. We stripped off at Anfield and then we went down to Melwood by bus. When it’s still summer and pre-season and when you are still hot and perspiring, you don’t want to be leaping into the bath five minutes after you have finished. Oh no. If you do, then you’ll sweat all bloody day. So after training, I encouraged the boys to have a little walk around and then have a nice cup of tea. And then we’d all get on the bus back to Anfield. It takes about fifteen minutes or so to get from Melwood in West Derby back to Anfield. And so you see, about forty minutes would have passed from training until they actually got into the bath. And I am certain, bloody certain, this is one of the reasons why we were always fitter than the rest. Because most of the other clubs, they report directly to their training grounds. And they strip off there. And so then they come straight off the training pitch and into a hot bath. Now I always disagreed with that. Strongly disagreed.

I mean, our lads never felt uncomfortable. Oh no. They never had their lunch with sweat pouring off them. And in my opinion, this was very important and a key part of Liverpool’s fitness. It actually prevented injuries from happening. Stripping off at Anfield and then getting the bus out to Melwood. And then having a cup of tea before getting the bus back to Anfield. It was very important. Oh yes …

So I mean, these are basic routines. Basic things, simple things. And the same things apply to the actual training sessions. The same basic things, very simple things. Footballers normally train for an hour and a half. But it doesn’t mean they work for an hour and a half. Oh no. Some might be demonstrating a function while others are watching them, you see? And then it’s your turn. And then the others are watching you, you see? So it’s not how long you train. Oh no. It’s what you put into it. Oh yes. I mean, if you train properly, thirty-five minutes a day might well do you. It might well be enough.

I mean, we built Liverpool’s training on exhaustion and recovery with little areas of two-a-side, three-a-side and five-a-side. And in these little areas, you are working hard. Like a boxer, you see? Twisting and turning, turning and twisting. Training the basic skills, working on the simple things. Control. Passing. Vision. And awareness. Oh yes. Our training was based on these simple skills. These basic skills. That was what our training was based on. And on fitness. Because if you are fully fit, you have a huge advantage over everybody else. Oh yes. A tremendous advantage. Oh yes …

And I mean, then after all the training. After all the training was complete, on a Friday. We always had a talk about the impending game. All the players and the subs attended. And one of us, one of the staff. We would have watched the opposition. And they would bring in their report. You know, was it four — four — two, four — three — three or whatever. And did any of the opposing players have any little characteristics we might want to stifle? That kind of thing. But I never ever discussed the opposition at length. Oh no. The last thing you want to do is to talk about the opposition at length. It only builds up your opponents. And then it frightens your own players …

So I mean, we might have been playing Manchester United that weekend. But I wasn’t going to be singing their praises. The praises of the bloody opposition. Oh no. I tell you, I remember once coming out of one of them meetings. And one of our lads, he said to one of his mates. He said, So are Best, Law and Charlton not playing then? And that made me smile, made me laugh. Because you see, we were only concerned about us. And our collective approach. And that was simple. Keep everything simple. And be patient. Even if it takes eighty-nine minutes to score. Keep it simple. And be patient. Because the number of times we won a match at the death was unbelievable. Bloody unbelievable. And when you sneak one like that, it’s heartbreaking for the opposition. Bloody heartbreaking. Oh yes …