Before the Watford win on St. Patrick’s Day a snowy Anfield was echoing in applause to honour the life of one of their former players. Sadly, John Molyneux passed away at the beginning of March and as I was stood in 305 and listened to Peter McDowell’s summary of Molyneux’s career, I knew I wanted to go home and learn more about a man who represented Liverpool nearly 250 times.
Molyneux signed for Chester in 1947 as a sixteen-year-old and broke into their first team by the 1949-50 season. Chester were a Third Division North side during his time at the club, which was interrupted by him joining up for National Service when he was 21. Because of his National Service, Molyneux was in and out of the Chester team which led to him making only 20 league appearances in two years. His return from the armed forces brought with it a return to the Chester side, he was a stalwart of an unfortunate side as he player 45 league games as Chester finished bottom of the Third Division North in the 1954-55 season. Liverpool’s fortunes were equally as disappointing as they had been relegated in the previous season and only managed a mid-table Second Division finish in the same campaign that Molyneux’s Chester were relegated. Liverpool agreed a £4,000 deal with Chester with an extra £1,500 to be added on should Molyneux play 12 games.
Very much a no fuss, no nonsense defender, Molyneux played right-back and was famed for his power, physique and reliability. This rewarded him with a regular spot in the Liverpool side, he played at least 30 games per season in each of his first six campaigns at Anfield. Molyneux spent seven seasons at Liverpool, his first six supplied him with 245 games and 3 goals yet his final season, 1961-62, only consisted of three appearances. He was present for the transition from Don Welsh to Phil Taylor and Taylor to Bill Shankly, Shankly of course went on to become possibly the most important man in the history of Liverpool but for Molyneux he was unwelcome news. The Shankly era began in December 1959 and Molyneux was certainly part of his team.
Upon his arrival, Shankly needed results to win the supporters’ trust. The 1961-62 season proved to be the campaign when Liverpool FC were promoted from the Second Division into the First Division, as champions. This season showcased Shankly’s shrewd transfer market ability and management skills. The 1961-62 season was Shankly’s third at Anfield, twice he had attempted to lift Liverpool FC out of the Second Division, twice he had narrowly failed and finished third.
He highlighted a list of ‘twenty-four names’ of players he wanted to leave the club ‘inside a year’, believing Liverpool were ‘overburdened’ with too many substandard players. One of the men on this list was Molyneux. Shankly had frictions with the Liverpool board of directors. He described them as ‘gamblers on a losing streak who were afraid to bet anymore’. This was largely due to the thirteen years it had been without a trophy, and the six years they had spent in the Second Division. Despite strong performances in his first two seasons, Liverpool were still not promoted, and the board were not confident enough to financially support all of Shankly’s plans. This was until the arrival of Eric Sawyer. When Shankly arrived, he said Liverpool had ‘no money whatsoever to buy players’, though Sawyer was ‘an ambitious man’ and his arrival gave Shankly the backing he needed at a higher level.
Shankly put two players at the top of his transfer wish list, but the board still met his desires with scepticism, stating that the club could not afford them. However, Sawyer spoke up and said, “We cannot afford not to buy them”. Shankly went on to secure the signature of his two men, Ian St John and Ron Yeats, the two proved to be, according to Thompson, the ‘backbone of Liverpool’s success in the 1960s’.
Molyneux remained at the club for 1961-62 season but his opportunities were few and far between. Ron Yeats’ arrival meant a shift to the right for Dick White and a shift out of the team for Molyneux. Three of his four appearances were in the busy Christmas period and Liverpool only won one of the four he featured in, conceding nine goals. Molyneux’s chances were weakened further when Shankly trialled the formidable defensive partnership of Yeats, Moran and Byrne. It was clear that Molyneux was not going to be a first-team starter, he was now in his 30’s and his career was heading in the opposite direction to Shankly’s Liverpool. At the end of the season Liverpool were joyously heading back to the First Division whereas Molyneux was returning to Chester who had just finished second bottom of the Fourth Division. It is fair to assume that Molyneux could have played at a higher level, he was an important part of the Shankly side that narrowly failed to achieve promotion twice, however Molyneux wanted to re-join his first club Chester. This illustrates the loyalty and dependency that Molyneux possessed as he wanted to help his former club out of their torrid position.
Molyneux spent a further two seasons at Chester but only featured once in the 1963-64 season due to an injury in the first game of the campaign. His time at Chester did not improve the on-field performances and Molyneux’s professional career was over. He joined non-league New Brighton in the Cheshire County League and that was where he finished his footballing career.
Retirement from football saw a move back home to Warrington where he became owner of Wards Sports. His full retirement was spent with wife Patricia, children John, Ian, Tracy, family and friends until Molyneux passed away aged 87 on the 5th of March. When he was asked in 2012 about his favourite Liverpool memory he said,
“My most outstanding memory when playing at Liverpool was watching the Spion Kop crowd coming down and up the steps like a wave in the sea whenever Billy Liddell was going down the wing towards the Kop”.
A selfless and loyal servant to Liverpool and Chester, Molyneux gave a lot for the team and was a solid and dependable man that should be remembered for many years to come.
Rest in Peace John Allan Molyneux.
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