NewsLiverpool's Greatest - No.20: Ian St John
Years: 1961-1971
Appearances: 425
Goals: 118
Trophies: Second Division (1961-62), First Division (1963-64, 1965-66), FA Cup (1965)
Ian St John belied a diminutive physical stature to make a massive imprint on the history of Liverpool FC.
Alongside the likes of Roger Hunt and Ron Yeats, the Scottish striker was a transformative figure in the 1960s as Bill Shankly set about reviving the Reds from the doldrums of the Second Division and putting the club on a path to glory.
Upon hearing Motherwell were fielding offers for St John, the boss made a beeline north in May 1961 to ensure Anfield was his destination.
“Hard player, tough player, cute player,” Shankly said of him. “The very beginning of Liverpool’s rise.
“Yeats at the back, St John at the front. They did more for the rise than anybody else.”
The prodigious goalscorer hit the back of the net 18 times in league football during his debut season at Anfield to aid a return to the top flight.
He increased that figure by one in the next campaign and then again enhanced his output to 21 league strikes in 1963-64 as Shankly’s first great Liverpool side won the championship.
A slight dip in such output across the 1964-65 campaign was offset by St John producing one of the most famous and important goals in Reds history.
It was his stooping header against Leeds United at Wembley that sealed a 2-1 victory in the 1965 FA Cup final and ended a frustrating wait for Liverpool to lift a trophy it was whispered they were cursed to never claim.
“I’ve never headed a more important goal,” he said. “That was the most important goal – we’d won the cup. The whole of your career after that, they can’t take it away from you.”
He offered much more than goals, too. St John was a creator for others as well, while the intensity of his competitiveness and appetite for a battle embodied everything Shankly demanded from his players.
A second league championship success came in 1965-66 to cap a remarkable turnaround in the Reds’ fortunes over the preceding five years.
By the end of what would be a decade of outstanding service on Merseyside, St John had passed the marks of 400 appearances and 100 goals at Liverpool – one of only eight men to have achieved both of those figures.
“I just would like to be thought of as part of the evolution of the club,” he said. “Part of the resurgence of Liverpool under Bill Shankly.
“I believe I played my part in it, the way that all the boys in our team played their part in it. We were very fortunate to have a boss who took over the club and sent us off in that direction.
“I just want to be remembered as one of the guys who were very much part of that.”
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