rome 84

Whatever the rights and wrongs the fact is the Echo is losing the best Liverpool FC reporter it's ever had. Think of all the big Liverpool stories over the last few years and the odds are Chris has broken them.

Is he bringing Souness back as head of recruitment as well?

http://www.tonybarrett.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/08/thank_you.html

Nice one mate. It takes a very, very big man to do what you've done there.

I know mate. It was his tune tho, the one he loved and it meant the world to him. And those mosaics take weeks to arrange and cost the club thousands (not that I think cost would've been an issue). Usually, I try and drown Z Cars out with YNWA but tonight I'll be applauding it in his memory.

Have more faith in your fellow fans Cardie. I know we can do this.

No and neither should they be criticised. Their view is as valid as everyone elses. All I'd ask of them is to respect the way the club and Rhys family have decided to pay tribute to an 11-year-old Liverpool boy who lost his life in such tragic circumstances. By all means criticise it but don't do it during the tribute. And we should also remember that Z Cars is being played because it was Rhys' favourite song, not because it is an Everton song.

Do we have to have the debate again today? I understand all the misgivings and I have sympathy with many of them but this is the way Liverpool Football Club and, more importantly, Rhys' family have agreed to proceed so it'd be great if we could put any misgivings and doubts to one side and get behind them.

http://www.tonybarrett.merseyblogs.co.uk/2007/08/z_cars_at_anfield_tonight.html

It really doesn't have to degenerate into some sort of debate. Many supporters have expressed a wish for Liverpool to stage some sort of show of respect for a son of this city who died in such tragic circumstances. Nothing more, nothing less. It' in the hands of the club and Rhys' family now so maybe it would be best if we could leave it in their capable hands now.

Just to let everyone know, I've spoken to Rhys uncle today and he told me the whole family would be really appreciative of any gesture that would be made by the Liverpool fans. A channel of communication has now been opened between the family and the club, so,hopefully, something will be arranged for Tuesday night. I've got no idea what form the gesture might take but I think we can leave that to the parties involved now. By the way, Rhys' uncle is a very impressive fella and, having spoken to him, I can't speak highly enough of him and his family.

Limited in what sense? Limited in that he was rarely if ever given the runaround by wingers? Limited in that he gave Hyypia and Henchoz the kind of cover that helped them become one of the finest central defensive partnerships in Europe? Limited in that he kept possession more often than not, albeit with passing which was generally safe rather than adventurous? He was a quality full back. His only limitation was that he wasn't a natural attacking full back but his first job was to defend and he was and still is brilliant at that.

Everton. Well managed, with a good team spirit and good signings to make the squad stronger than it was. They're gonna be difficult to beat this season, particularly at Goodison.

The ones who used to hate Carra try and excuse themselves by saying he wasn't as good then and claiming he's only become boss cos he's taken on board much of the criticism he was getting. Bollocks. He has always been a class defender and any criticism of him in the past was totally unjustified.

Whelan was the ultimate scapegoat for years and it was totally ridiculous. All the clowns who got on his back were made to look stupid when he was out injured cos it usually resulted in the team struggling badly. Same goes for Carra. Certain people should be ashamed of the way they treated him for a couple of years. He was the best defensive full back in the Prem and all he got was abuse for not being Cafu.

Nice one for keeping us updated Kurt, I'm defo interested.

There were two incidents involving Torres and Terry, one in either half. The first one Gerrard got involved in but I think by the time the second one happened he'd decided the new boy was more than capable of looking after himself. Gerrard's post match interview was both brilliant and irritating. He did really well with the Styles stuff, making a twat of him without actually calling him one. As has been pointed out he let himself down with his demand to play in the middle tho. But I would point out that post-match interviews literally seconds after you've just come off after a game like that are never gonna be straightforward and it must be easy to find yourself saying things you wouldn't usually.

Don't wanna burst your bubble boys but the latest example you have cited isn't plagarism. It's just an example of more than one paper taking Press Association copy.

There's one crucial difference between the Terry song and the ones about Gerrard and Neville - it's 100% true. The other two are a load of bollocks, the one about Gerrard being based on malicious and false rumours and the one about Neville being borne out of a desire to wind the horrible twat up. Neither Terry or his ma could sue over yesterday's chant. It might be tasteless but I reckon every single person on the Kop yesterday will have laughed at it, or at least wanted to.

Judging by the rest of the Kop we weren't the only ones laughing either. There was a huge belly laugh after it was sung for the first time. Childish? Yes Peurile? Definitely Funny? Undoubtedly

Have to admit, I laughed at the Terry song. Go shoot me.

Some of the criticism of the RTK on here is beyond a fucking joke. There was nothing wrong with the noise levels yesterday, although it has to be acknowledged that the atmosphere did fade in the second half. In the first half I heard the Kop sing some of the greatest Liverpool songs that are only usually reserved for away games cos only the most hardcore Reds know them. Every Other Saturday, Liver Bird Upon My Chest and We Don't Carry Bottles were all belted out and it was great to hear them. Even Scouser Tommy was sung at the right speed for a change. It will get better because it will take time for some of our "newer" fans to get used to some of the songs they haven't heard and learn the words. But anything that results in us singing "Liver Bird" more than drivel like "Fuck Off Chelsea FC" and the infamous "Who Are Ye" can only be a good thing. Don't let your prejudices get in the way of what it was actually like yesterday. We saw a step in the right direction and I hope the good start made by block 1892 is a sign of things to come. Give it a chance. You never know, you might even end up enjoying it.

That was my first ever derby. I can remember being stunned when Craig johnston chinned McMahon during a tussle and the referee didn't even talk to him, never mind book him or send him off!

Read it again! It's not a call for protests!!

Again, that only partly explains it. Success does engender trust but there have been occasions when we have felt very let down by the club or concerned by there actions but we have only ever had one protest. Off the top of my head I can think of: The board allowing Bill Shankly, our most charismatic and arguably our greatest mangager of all time/or forced him out depending on your point of view. Rick Parry hawking the club around the world to anyone willing to put up the cash to buy it, even entertaining a greatly discredited Thai politician. Telling us the Arabs were the best thing since slice bread only to change their mind and tell us the Yanks were even better than the best thing since sliced bread all within a matter of days. The Athens tickets fiasco. Putting up with some of the worst football ever seen at Anfield under Houllier. The club allowing a manager to remain in his job after he sold his story to The Sun. Only one of these incidents caused any public unrest (the tickets fiasco) whereas most, if not all, would have caused murder at most other clubs. We simply mutter under our breath, rant on message boards or whinge to our mates. The lack of any real protest at Anfield marks us out as different and it intrigues me as to why this is the case.