AT the end of September 33 years ago, one of Liverpool's most famous players, of whom Scousers speak in the same breath as Shankly and Daglish, spent the weekend in the North East in order to play in a charity match which would raise funds for the Seaham Town mayor's annual appeal.
Billy Liddell was the Liverpool star who, after spending his entire professional career at Anfield, had been described as 'the greatest player to pull on a red shirt', scoring 228 goals in 534 appearances.
He also scored eight goals for Scotland from 29 appearances.
Billy Liddell on the left of the middle row on May 7, 1947, as he joined the Great Britain squad ahead of their match against the Rest of Europe. Back: Billy Hughes, Jack Vernon, George Young; Middle: Billy Liddell, Raich Carter, Billy Steel; Front: Tommy Lawton, George Hardwick, Archie Macaulay, Wilf Mannion, Stanley Matthews
He was a true gentleman, never booked or sent off, and he abstained from alcohol, even when assigned a navigator's role in the RAF during the Second World War. He never talked about the enemy in a hateful way.
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Born in Townhill, a former mining village in Fife, on January 10, 1922, he experienced austerity and poverty as a youngster with his diet made up of bread, kale and salt porridge. Billy was an intelligent scholar at school, contemplative and studious, and his teachers and parents agreed that he should train to be an accountant.
Billy, though, after playing with local football teams Kingseat Juveniles and Lochgelly Violet, wanted to be a footballer, but little did he know that behind the scenes he was being guided by Liverpool star and future Manchester United legend Matt Busby.
Busby had spotted him playing and had telephoned Liverpool manager George Key to recommend Billy to the club.
Billy left Fife in 1938 and became the beating heart of Liverpool from the 1930s to the 1960s as the team became known as “Liddellpool”.
In September 1990, the charity match in aid of the Seaham mayor's charity saw Liddell play for Liverpool City Veterans against Seaham Town Veterans in the match organised by Steve Jones, who sadly is now deceased.
All we know of the teams is that Billy played for the Liverpool Veterans and Steve Jones and Fred McIver for the Seaham Town Veterans and the score was 4-2 in Seaham's favour.
For the weekend of September 29-30, 1990, Liddell stayed in the same Washington hotel as the Liverpool team who were playing at Roker Park on the Saturday. Billy, however, preferred to visit the National Garden Festival rather than join the 31,000 crowd at Roker Park.
Steve Jones once said: "I think that is some sort of reflection on the modern game."
Steve's wife Carol, who has greatly helped with this article, said: "Billy and his wife were lovely people, and after the match we all went to the Assembly Rooms in Seaham for a meal and entertainment."
Billy’s last game for Liverpool was on August 31,1960, in a 1-0 defeat to Southampton.
Bill Shankly once said: "Liddell was some player! He had everything: fast, powerful, he could shoot with either foot, and his headers were like blasts from a gun. On top of all that, he was as hard as granite.
“What a player! He was so strong, and he took a 19 inch collar shirt."
While the Seaham veterans defeated Liddell’s veterans that weekend, Sunderland lost their Division 1 encounter with Liverpool 1-0, Ray Houghton scoring after 44 minutes.
Sunderland: Norman, Kay, Ord, Bennett, Ball, Owers, Bracewell, Armstrong, Davenport, Gabbiadini, Cullen.
Liverpool: Grobbelaar, Hysen, Burrows, Nicol, Whelan, Gillespie, Beardsley, Houghton, Rush, Barnes McMahon.
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