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Ian St John
John "Ian" St John (/sɪntˈdʒɒn/; 7 June 1938 – 1 March 2021) was a Scottish professional football player, coach and broadcaster. St John played as a forward for Liverpool throughout most of the 1960s. Signed by Bill Shankly in 1961, St John was a key member of the Liverpool team that emerged from the second tier of English football to win two league titles and one FA Cup—in which he scored the winner in the 1965 final—to cement a position as one of the country's top sides. He played for Scotland 21 times, scoring nine goals.
He later became a manager – including at his hometown team Motherwell where he had begun his playing career – and a media pundit. He co-presented the topical football show Saint and Greavsie with Jimmy Greaves from 1985 to 1992. In 2008, he was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.
St John was one of six children. Their father, Alex, a steelworker, died when Ian was six years old. Ian also showed talent for boxing as a boy, but his mother discouraged it. Having played football for youth sides and works teams as a teenager while working in local industry, including at the Colville steelworks, St John began his career at boyhood favourites Motherwell, signing as a professional in 1957 after a spell with affiliated junior team Douglas Water Thistle as a provisional signing; he continued a part-time engineering apprenticeship (work which he admitted he disliked and actively avoided as much as possible) for a further two years.
He was managed by Bobby Ancell, and was part of a group of talented young players (also including Andy Weir, Willie Hunter, Pat Quinn and Sammy Reid) that were nicknamed the "Ancell Babes". His debut was against Dumfries side Queen of the South in an away fixture at Palmerston Park. St John scored a hat-trick for Motherwell in two minutes and 30 seconds against Hibernian in 1959, one of the fastest recorded in Scottish football history. He left Motherwell in 1961, having scored 105 goals in 144 appearances for the club in the three major Scottish domestic competitions.
On 2 May 1961 he was transferred to Liverpool for a transfer fee of £37,500, (equivalent to £700,000 in 2025) setting a new club record. He was brought to the club by manager Bill Shankly, who was preparing for the 1961–62 season with the club still in the Second Division. Many years later, after Shankly's retirement as manager, he described St John's arrival at the club – along with that of Ron Yeats during the same summer – as the "turning point" for the club as they began their transformation into one of Europe's top footballing sides.
St John made his debut for Liverpool in the Merseyside derby against Everton in the Liverpool Senior Cup. Although Liverpool lost 4–3, he announced his arrival in spectacular style by scoring all three of his side's goals. He scored a total of 18 goals in his first season for Liverpool, and played in all but two matches. His official debut came in a 2–0 league victory against Bristol Rovers at the Eastville Stadium on 19 August 1961, and his first official goals came 11 days later when he scored twice in a 4–1 win over Sunderland at Roker Park. His strike partner Roger Hunt got the other two goals.
Along with Ron Yeats, St John was brought in to turn around Liverpool's luck as they had been stuck in the Second Division for seven years, narrowly missing out on promotion in six of those seasons. The purchases paid dividends as Liverpool comfortably won the Second Division title by eight points over nearest challengers Leyton Orient. St John played 40 times that season and scored 18 goals. They finished in a respectable 8th place in their first season back in the top flight, 1962–63, and also reached the FA Cup semi-finals.
Liverpool then produced a surprise by winning the league championship in 1963–64, overturning a 17-point deficit to win the title by four points over Manchester United and five over reigning champions Everton, St John played a major role in the title success by scoring 21 goals, which was his highest total in a season for the club. His most important goal for Liverpool came a year later, a diving header past Leeds goalkeeper Gary Sprake in extra time of the 1965 FA Cup Final. This goal won the FA Cup for Liverpool, the first time in the club's history that it had won the trophy.
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Ian St John
John "Ian" St John (/sɪntˈdʒɒn/; 7 June 1938 – 1 March 2021) was a Scottish professional football player, coach and broadcaster. St John played as a forward for Liverpool throughout most of the 1960s. Signed by Bill Shankly in 1961, St John was a key member of the Liverpool team that emerged from the second tier of English football to win two league titles and one FA Cup—in which he scored the winner in the 1965 final—to cement a position as one of the country's top sides. He played for Scotland 21 times, scoring nine goals.
He later became a manager – including at his hometown team Motherwell where he had begun his playing career – and a media pundit. He co-presented the topical football show Saint and Greavsie with Jimmy Greaves from 1985 to 1992. In 2008, he was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.
St John was one of six children. Their father, Alex, a steelworker, died when Ian was six years old. Ian also showed talent for boxing as a boy, but his mother discouraged it. Having played football for youth sides and works teams as a teenager while working in local industry, including at the Colville steelworks, St John began his career at boyhood favourites Motherwell, signing as a professional in 1957 after a spell with affiliated junior team Douglas Water Thistle as a provisional signing; he continued a part-time engineering apprenticeship (work which he admitted he disliked and actively avoided as much as possible) for a further two years.
He was managed by Bobby Ancell, and was part of a group of talented young players (also including Andy Weir, Willie Hunter, Pat Quinn and Sammy Reid) that were nicknamed the "Ancell Babes". His debut was against Dumfries side Queen of the South in an away fixture at Palmerston Park. St John scored a hat-trick for Motherwell in two minutes and 30 seconds against Hibernian in 1959, one of the fastest recorded in Scottish football history. He left Motherwell in 1961, having scored 105 goals in 144 appearances for the club in the three major Scottish domestic competitions.
On 2 May 1961 he was transferred to Liverpool for a transfer fee of £37,500, (equivalent to £700,000 in 2025) setting a new club record. He was brought to the club by manager Bill Shankly, who was preparing for the 1961–62 season with the club still in the Second Division. Many years later, after Shankly's retirement as manager, he described St John's arrival at the club – along with that of Ron Yeats during the same summer – as the "turning point" for the club as they began their transformation into one of Europe's top footballing sides.
St John made his debut for Liverpool in the Merseyside derby against Everton in the Liverpool Senior Cup. Although Liverpool lost 4–3, he announced his arrival in spectacular style by scoring all three of his side's goals. He scored a total of 18 goals in his first season for Liverpool, and played in all but two matches. His official debut came in a 2–0 league victory against Bristol Rovers at the Eastville Stadium on 19 August 1961, and his first official goals came 11 days later when he scored twice in a 4–1 win over Sunderland at Roker Park. His strike partner Roger Hunt got the other two goals.
Along with Ron Yeats, St John was brought in to turn around Liverpool's luck as they had been stuck in the Second Division for seven years, narrowly missing out on promotion in six of those seasons. The purchases paid dividends as Liverpool comfortably won the Second Division title by eight points over nearest challengers Leyton Orient. St John played 40 times that season and scored 18 goals. They finished in a respectable 8th place in their first season back in the top flight, 1962–63, and also reached the FA Cup semi-finals.
Liverpool then produced a surprise by winning the league championship in 1963–64, overturning a 17-point deficit to win the title by four points over Manchester United and five over reigning champions Everton, St John played a major role in the title success by scoring 21 goals, which was his highest total in a season for the club. His most important goal for Liverpool came a year later, a diving header past Leeds goalkeeper Gary Sprake in extra time of the 1965 FA Cup Final. This goal won the FA Cup for Liverpool, the first time in the club's history that it had won the trophy.
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