LFC at 120: Ayre, Hunt and Cally

Next to the club's first-ever shirt - a blue and white number that looked oddly out of place in the home dressing room and the club's brand-new Warrior top, the trio spoke about their fondest Liverpool memories and reflected on how the game has changed down the decades.

Ayre was first and the managing director told Liverpoolfc.tv: "I think the most important thing is that at a football club, particularly this one, you have to maintain the values and principles that the club was built on and that's always a challenge.

"You have to try and move with the times but retain the legacy and history and the important things that make Liverpool Football Club what it is. That's the thing that everyone here strives to do.

"A lot has changed in 120 years. The biggest change of all is the business of football, more than the football itself. Bill Shankly spoke about the holy trinity of the players, the supporters and the manager but I think you have to add the business in now, in this modern day football. It's such a big part of being able to compete."

A life-long Red, Ayre has experienced the thrilling highs as well as the lows of following the club.

He went from standing on the terraces to sitting in the directors box, travelled the world supporting and working for the club and even netted a penalty in front of the Kop after winning a competition to take part in a half-time shoot-out during Chris Lawler's testimonial, aged 14.

But what has been the highlight of his time as a Red?

"It's very difficult to pick-out one moment that defines the club," admitted Ayre. "I think for every fan and for every person who has been connected to the club, their experiences will be slightly different. I don't think there's one individual moment.

"A lot would refer to Istanbul and the fantastic fight-back. For me personally it was probably being at Anfield stood on the Kop at the St. Etienne game in 1977 when David Fairclough scored and that got us to the semi-final and to the first European Cup win in Rome.

"There are so many moments and that's the great thing about football and the great thing about being a Liverpool supporter. There are so many to chose from and so many memories to enjoy.

"But the club is made up of all sorts of things. Good memories, bad memories. Good days, difficult days and its absolutely essential to remember all of those parts together. It's part of our DNA and it's a very important part."

And what will the next 120 years hold for Liverpool FC?

"I wish I could see that far ahead," laughed Ayre. "The next 120 days is a challenge! I think the thing that everyone wants is to see us return the club to its former glory at the top of football; we've probably lost our way a little bit over the last few years.

"That's what every fan wants. It's what the owners want, it's what I want and it's what everyone connected with the club wants. So I think restoring this great football club back to the top of European and English football is what everybody's objective is."

Roger Hunt was 20 years old when he joined the club in 1958. He would go on to score 245 league goals in a red shirt and cement his name in Anfield folklore, but it could all have been so different for 'Sir Roger'.

"I had an offer while I was in the army, from Swindon Town, but fortunately I decided to come here," admitted Hunt. "It was a fantastic experience for me to sign for a club like Liverpool. They were fantastic years I spent there.

"I'd just come out of the army and I'd never been to Liverpool Football Club before because I was a Bolton Wanderers fan. It was all very new to me. We were in the second division in those days and they used to have the staff of about 46 professionals. So they had about four teams of pros and the training was all about running rather than with the ball."

That all changed when Bill Shankly arrived at Anfield in 1959. The Reds were soon promoted to England's top division and by 1964 they had won the league title.

In 1965, Shankly's side ended a 73-year wait for Liverpool's name to be engraved on the FA Cup.

"I think winning the FA Cup in 1965 was a fantastic moment because the cup was massive and Liverpool had never won it, so to be in a team that won the FA Cup for the first time in Liverpool's history was brilliant.

"We got promotion, which was good, and we won the league championship in 1964. The next year, we won the FA Cup and in 1966 we won the league title, it was a fantastic time.

"Everywhere you go, you see Liverpool fans and there are people who remember you. I still get loads of mail for things to be signed and it's fantastic, it just changed my life. This club has had a tremendous amount of success and I'm sure they're going to have more."

Ian Callaghan made 857 appearances for Liverpool. The closest to him on the all-time appearances list is Jamie Carragher with 699.

"The highlight for me was when Bill Shankly decided he wanted to sign me as a professional," explained Cally.

"I'll always remember the time he asked me. I was serving my time as a central heating engineer and I remember saying to him, 'Mr Shankly, I've got a good job, I'm an apprentice, you'll have to come down and see my mum and dad'.

"I lived in Toxteth, in the tenements and I remember him coming down, he parked outside and all the kids who lived by us were saying, 'Bill Shankly's at Ian Callaghan's house!'

"As soon as he went inside, my mum and dad took to him and I signed for Liverpool as a pro. That was the highlight for me because that was the start of coming and playing for this great club.

"When you think about it, from coming out of the second division in 1962, success came year after year from then on and it was fantastic. You only have to look around to see this club is steeped in history. The glory days will come back."