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As we reach the halfway stage of our '100 Players Who Shook The Kop' countdown we present to you at number 50, legendary centre forward of the immediate post-war era, Albert Stubbins.
Four years after our ground-breaking '100 Days That Shook The Kop', we are delighted to invite you to enjoy our new '100 Players Who Shook The Kop' series – the definitive countdown of the 100 players who have made the biggest impact at Liverpool.
Over 110,000 supporters have all nominated their own personal Top 10 players in order of impact made and now the definitive top 100 countdown is underway.
Every player who has made the top 100 – and there are some surprises in there - will be honoured on this website via the e-Season ticket console with a specially produced video clip, including archive footage and exclusive interviews.
Since 1892 hundreds of players have represented this club but everyone has their own particular favourites so don't expect this list to be based solely on talent. The greatness of a player can be measured in many ways – obviously, his ability on the pitch is the most important, but 100 PWSTK is much more than that. It's about the impact the individuals chosen have had on this club, be it for a variety of reasons. Maybe it was because of their unique rapport with the crowd, a specific incident that has never been forgotten or anything else that has left a lasting impression.
Name: Albert Stubbins
Years at Liverpool: 1946 to 1953
Position: Forward
Date-of-birth: 17/7/1919
Birthplace: Wallsend
Signed from: Newcastle United (September 1946)
Games played: 180
Goals scored: 83
Honours won: First Division Championship (1946/47)
One of the most popular player to ever don the famous red shirt, Stubbins cost the club a then record £12,500 when he was signed from Newcastle United during the early weeks of the inaugural post-war league season. A prolific wartime marksman, when league football resumed in 1946 his signature was one of the most sought after in the game and Liverpool pipped Everton to capture him. Unfazed by the record transfer fee that would have hung like a millstone around the neck of lesser players Stubbins quickly set about repaying the huge investment in him, making the centre forward position his own and, together with Jackie Balmer, he fired the Reds to an unlikely championship triumph. It was a memorable season in more ways than one because in March 1947 he also scored what was to be his most celebrated goal – a diving header in a FA Cup quarter-final tie against Birmingham, that is still talked about to this day as the 'goal in snow'. Possessing a lethal combination of power, pace and skill, the ginger-haired Geordie was a fearless centre-forward who was at his most dangerous when running at defences with the ball at his feet. A self-imposed strike prior to the 1947/48 campaign added to his cult-status, as did the four goals he netted against Huddersfield Town in March 1948 despite receiving a threatening telegram prior to the game, warning that his legs would be broken if he scored! In 1950 he played a prominent role in helping Liverpool reach a Wembley Cup Final for the first time but the latter part of his Anfield career was plagued by injuries and he was unable to repeat the goalscoring heroics that had made him an instant hit on the Kop. He eventually returned to his native Tyneside in 1953 but was never forgotten by his adoring fans in the red half of Merseyside. Forty years after he'd last pulled on a red shirt, fan clubs were being formed in his honour and on his last ever visit to Anfield in April 1994 he received a thunderous reception from Kopites who were far too young to have ever seen him play. 'A-L-B-E-R-T – Albert Stubbins is the man for me!'
Sold to: Ashington (1953)
Claim to fame: Scoring the never-to-be-forgotten 'goal in the snow'
Did you know: He was the only footballer to appear on the cover of acclaimed Beatles album Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
Where is he now? Passed away 28 December 2002
Stephen Done on Albert Stubbins: "He helped us win the 1946/47 First Division Championship and during his time with the club he scored the most amazing goals at times, some of them were incredible. A club record signing at the time, he is one of the great, great, names of post-war Liverpool."
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