It’s the most wonderful time of the year, so Jim Boardman and Jay Reid get together for an almost festive edition of the show as they look forward to wall-to-wall football. It might give coaches and medical staff nightmares, but being part of a hungover Boxing Day crowd is a cherished tradition. With everything more weird than wonderful these days there might not be any crowds - or matches. Hopefully it won't come to it, but will TV money shout louder than competition integrity and player welfare? And what about fans, what do they want? That's a question the powers-that-be rarely ask, but in this case it's Jay and Jim wondering if it's worth playing at all if it's got to be in front of empty seats. Whatever happens, Merry Christmas - and you, Everton!
Jim Boardman and Jay Reid are back to discuss the way former Reds usually get a warm Scouse welcome from the Kop whenever they return to Anfield with their new clubs. Not always, of course, but there aren’t many exceptions and when there are, is it deserved? Also, why are fans of other clubs so quick to boo their former players?
In this special edition of Scouser Tommies, Jim Boardman and Jan Gorski-Mescir discuss the career of Liverpool legend Ray Kennedy after his death qt the age of 70. Bill Shankly’s last signing, Ray would go on to be a key part of the Bob Paisley era, instrumental in the Reds making that step up from regular league title winners to regular European title winners. In Paisley’s words, Ray was “one of Liverpool’s greatest players and probably the most underrated”
Jim Boardman and Jay Reid are back for another episode of Scouser Tommies and the subject this week is one close to both their hearts: doing the Mancs over at their own place! The two try to get to the bottom of why that rivalry is unlike any other for the Reds and recall some of their favourite encounters from the past. They also have a good old gloat at just how clinical the Reds were in that 5-0 win (when they weren’t just killing time playing keep ball) - something that much of the media forgot to mention in their condemnation of Manchester’s favourite driver!
RECOGNISING LEGENDS
The return of Anfield Index's local take on all things Liverpool FC returns with Jim Boardman and Jay Reid discussing the impact of Mo Salah on the Reds' latest title bid and the risks that might come the longer his contract situation remains unresolved. Also, how does Mo rank alongside some of the Anfield greats to have gone before him - and can LFC do more to recognise those legends?
Jim Boardman was joined by Karl Coppack for some much-needed therapy as the Reds go through a spell nothing like the one they were going through 12 months earlier. The word “injuries” hasn’t been used this much at Anfield since Graeme Souness and Phil Boersma were together - but is that all there is to Liverpool’s troubles in this pantomime of a pandemic season?
Jim Boardman is joined by Dave Hendrick and Simon Brundish in a special episode remembering Gerard Houllier, the Liverpool manager who brought smiles and silverware back to Anfield and paved the way for his successors to bring more of the same. A Kopite himself, Houllier loved the club and wanted success as much any other supporter, as happy as any of us to see the club do well, even after his departure. 2001 was the standout year of Gerard's time in the Anfield hotseat - five trophies in six months, before cruelly taking ill during a league game and being rushed to hospital for heart surgery. Jim, Dave and Simon look back with fondness at the career of a man his former players still call "Boss".
Jim Boardman is joined by Gags Tandon as they grab with both hands the chance to talk once more about last season after getting a sneak preview of the soon-to-be released Liverpool documentary “The End of the Storm”. The feature-length film charts the journey to the end of that 30 year wait for LFC and features exclusive interviews not only with the likes of Klopp, King Kenny, Hendo, Ali, Sadio and Virgil, but also members of the club’s worldwide fanbase, including one of the Wuhan Reds. But did a movie filled with insight into that historic season win Gags and Jim over?
Jim Boardman is once again joined by Jan Gorski-Mescir as they continue the discussion of Jan’s time as a Liverpool fan, including his move away from the city and his support from further afield. Also, Jan gets an opportunity for the somewhat tricky task of choosing his all-time LFC XI, in his case made extra difficult by having more years as a match-watching Red to choose players from!
Jim Boardman is joined by Jan Gorski-Mescir for another of the special “back stories” episodes. In the first of two parts, Jan explains what it was that turned him into a Liverpool fan and it is arguably the most unique, definitely the most moving, of all the stories we’ve shared so far. Once he had become a Red, what was it about Anfield that kept him going back, and what was it like to be on the Kop in the era the nation, indeed the world, found out how special it was?
