The History
The patch of land
now known as Anfield was originally owned by John Orrell, a brewer
and friend of John Houlding, who agreed to let Everton rent the land
for a small fee. That was in 1884 and the first game played on the
ground was between Everton and Earlstown on 28 September with Everton
winning 5-0. Everton continued to use the ground until 1892 when a
dispute with Houlding over a rent increase led to their leaving and
purchasing another plot of land, known as Goodison Park.
During those eight
years, Houlding, who had been the moltivating force behind Everton,
had been pouring money into the ground and had erected a small stand
for some of the 8,000 spectators regularly attending games. When
Everton moved on Houlding, was left with his empty ground and made
the wise decision to form a new team to use it. Liverpool's first
game at Anfield was a friendly played on the Thursday evening, of 1
September, 1892 against Rotherdam Town. Liverpool won that game by
seven goals to one. After a highly successful season in the
Lancashire League, Liverpool were admitted to the Football League,
and their first league game at Anfield was played on 9 September, 1893.
They defeated
Lincoln City by four goals to nil in front of 5,000 spectators. As
the crowds began to flock to Anfield the club built a new stand in
1895 capable of seating 3,000. It was constructed on the site of the
present Main Stand and remained until 1973, although many changes
were made to it over the years. Another stand was built at the
Anfield Road end in 1903, constructed from timber and corrugated
iron. After Liverpool had won their second League Championship in
1906 the directors rewarded the fans by building a new banking at the
Walton Breck Road. A local journalist, Ernest Edwards, of the
Liverpool Daily Post and Echo christened it the Spion Kop, after a
famous hill in South Africa where a local regiment had suffered heavy
losses during the Boer War. The ground remained much the same for the
next twenty years until 1928 when a major redevelopment occurred.
The Kop was
redesigned and extended to accommodate 30,000 with a huge roof
erected. It was without question the largest Kop in the country, able
to hold more supporters than some entire football grounds. The top
mast of the Great Eastern, one of the first iron ships, was rescued
from the breakers' yard at the Rock Ferry and was painstakingly
hauled up the Everton Valley by a team of horses to be erected
alongside the new Kop where it stood for many years.
In 1957
floodlights were installed and on 30 October switched on for a game
against neighbours Everton for a special trophy to commemorate the
75th anniversary of the Liverpool County FA. But there were other
changes around Anfield until the team forced its way back into the
First Division. In 1963, the old Kemlyn Road stand was replaced by a
cantilevered stand, seating 6,700 and built at a cost of
£350,000. A couple of years later alterations were made at the
Anfield Road end, turning it into a large covered standing area. But
the biggest redevelopment came in 1973 when the old Main Stand was
ripped down and a magnificent new one constructed. It was officially
opened on 10 March, 1973 by the Duke of Kent. The next major change
came in the early 1990s when a second tier, costing £10 million,
was added to the old Kemlyn Road stand, turning it into a magnificent
11,000 all-seater stand.
The new stand was
equipped with executive boxes, dinning boxes and bars, making it one
of the finest stands in the country. In May 1994 came the most
dramatic change of all, with the old Spion Kop torn down to be
replaced by an all-seater stand, built to comply with the
recommendations of the Taylor Report following the Hillsborough
disaster. It was a sad day for Liverpool when they played their final
match in front of a noisy flag-waving Kop, knowing that it would
never be quite the same again. The times when 27,000 sang and swayed
on those great European nights were gone forever. But in its place
the club did the fans justice with a new 10,000 all-seater stand that
brought the ground's capacity up to 40,000. All these changes in
recent years have led to a fall in crowd capacity of Anfield.
The record
attendance of 61,905 to see Wolverhampton Wanders, then one of the
outstanding teams of the day, play Liverpool in a fourth round FA Cup
game in February 1952 will now stand forever. Liverpool's biggest
victory at Anfield was in the European Cup Winners Cup when they beat
Stromgodset 11-0 on 17 September 1974 while their biggest home defeat
came in April 1930 when Sunderland beat them 6-0. Anfield has hosted
six internationals, the first in 1889 when England beat Ireland by
six goals to one. England have also played Wales there on three
ocasions, in 1905, 1922 and 1931, winning all three games. In 1926
Ireland forced a memorable draw against England but perhaps the
finest international to have graced Anfield was the World Cup game
between Wales and Scotland in October 1977 when 50,000 saw Scotland
win 2-0 to capture a place in the finals.
During the Second
World War England and Wales fought out a 2-2 draw in front of 38,000.
Two features added to the ground in recent years reflect the strong
bond between the club, its supporters and the players. Following the
death of Bill Shankly, the club erected a memorial to him in the form
of the Shankly Gates which were formally opened by his widow, Nessie.
'You'll Never Walk Alone' is the message which tops the fine
wrought-iron gates. And after the Hillsborough tragedy when 96 died,
a memorial was erected close by with an eternal flame. Alongside it
are the names of all those who died. The many thousands who visited
Anfield following the disaster will never forget the sight of
thousands of scarves and flowers covering the pitch and the Kop, or
hanging from the Shankly Gates in tribute. It was the supporters' own
way of remembering.
