YNWA takes a look back at recent memorable League meetings at Anfield as Stoke City arrive for the 54th time in the League on Saturday. So far, we have won 41, drawn nine and lost just three.
300 up for Kenny
Steve Nicol and Kenny Dalglish were on target in the first half-hour as we won 2-0 in February 1985, our most recent League encounter, with Kenny making his 300th League appearance for the reds. In March 1983, we triumphed 5-1 with Dalglish scoring twice, with the other goals coming from Phil Neal, Craig Johnston and Graeme Souness. The Scots forward reached 300 senior club goals that day.
Red goalscoring blitzes
Inside-left Andy McGuigan became the first red to score five goals in a League game in January 1902, as we trounced Stoke 7-0 with Sam Raybould adding a brace. To be fair to the Potters their side was ravaged by food poisoning. They could field only nine players and at one stage during the match they were down to just seven!
Roger Hunt netted four on Boxing Day in 1963 as we triumphed 6-1 to give Bill Shankly his hundredth victory as reds boss, in his 188th game in charge. Ian St. John and Alf Arrowsmith also scored in one of eight meetings with the Potters on this festive day of the year.
Debutants galore
New record signing Emlyn Hughes made his reds debut in March 1967 in a 2-1 win, when Chris Lawler and Roger Hunt netted. He went on to make 665 reds appearances in total. Half-back Johnny Wheeler made his reds bow in September 1956 as we lost 2-0 in our Second Division fixture. Centre-half Jack Heydon debuted in our goalless draw in October 1950.
Forward Jack Balmer played his 200th reds game as we were held to a goalless top-flight draw in January 1948, while Scottish left-winger Doug McAvoy made the first of just two senior reds appearances. Keeper Alf Hobson made his reds bow in August 1936, as goals from Alf Hanson and Berry Nieuwenhuys secured a 2-1 victory in our opening fixture of the season. This was Manager George Kay's first game in charge of the reds. George Patterson debuted in a 1-0 win in December 1938.
Farewell strikes
Billy Liddell scored his 228th and final reds goal in March 1960, becoming our oldest post-war goalscorer, aged 38 years 55 days. We won this Second Division meeting 5-1, with Jimmy Harrower adding a brace, and Roger Hunt and Dave Hickson also netting.
Phil Boersma netted his thirtieth and final goal for the reds in September 1974 in our 3-0 victory. Steve Heighway rounded off the scoring, with the ball having been set rolling by a John Ritchie own goal.
Forward Bobby Murdoch bagged his seventh and final reds goal as we won 3-0 in a Second Division game in April 1958. He only played five more times before joining Barrow in September 1959. Billy Liddell scored the other goals, one of them from the spot.
Off the mark
Ronnie Whelan got his reds career off to a flying start by scoring on his debut in April 1981, in a 3-0 win over Stoke City, with Terry McDermott adding a brace. Forward Lane Carr struck for the reds for the first time in April 1935 as we thumped the Potters 5-0, with Vic Wright nabbing a brace and Fred Howe and Berry Nieuwenhuys also on the scoresheet.
Forward Sam English scored his first reds goal in our 1-1 draw in August 1933, the first time we had faced them since their name change form the simpler Stoke. Forward Daniel Cunliffe bagged a brace as we won 4-0 in October 1897, his first reds goals, with Frank Becton and Harry Bradshaw also on target.
Other big wins
Phil Thompson, Kevin Keegan and David Johnson added to a Phil Neal spot-kick as we won 4-0 in December 1976. Albert Stubbins netted twice as we won by the same score in March 1949, with Cyril Done and Jack Balmer also on target.
First victory
We secured our first ever victory in the First Division after nine previous games without a win when we faced Stoke for the first ever time in our history in October 1894. Jimmy Ross bagged a brace in our 2-0 defeat of the Potters.
Other home defeats
A Johnny Evans brace was not enough as we lost a Second Division encounter 4-2 in March 1955. four years later, Jimmy Melia struck twice with Louis Bimpson also netting as we lost 4-3.
