Players - John Molyneux

John Molyneux
Birthdate: 3 February 1931
Birthplace: Warrington, England
Date of death: 7 March 2018
Other clubs: Chester (1947-55), Chester (2 / 1962-64), New Brighton (1964-67)
Signed from: Chester
Signed for LFC: £5,500, 23.06.1955
Liverpool debut: 03.09.1955
Last appearance: 13.01.1962
Debut goal: 08.01.1958
Last goal: 30.03.1960
Contract expiry: 16.08.1962
Win ratio: 49.8% W:124 D:55 L:70
League games / goals: 229 / 2
Total games / goals: 249 / 3

Player Profile

Molyneux joined Chester as a 16-year-old in 1947 after being spotted playing football with A. Monk and Co. by one of the directors of Chester who was also a director of the company. He was a regular in Chester's first team from the 1949/50 season onwards in Third Division North until he joined up for National Service at the age of 21, having been deferred as an apprentice fitter at A. Monk when he was at the usual calling-up age of 18. After only being available for 20 League games in two years Molyneux returned from the Army to play 46 League games in the 1954/55 season when Chester finished bottom of the League. Molyneux was transferred to recently-relegated Liverpool for £4,000 with £1,500 added after he featured in 12 games.

Molyneux was a powerful right-back of great physique. He was an unspectacular player, but solid. His opponents would have one hell'uva time to try to pass this ferocious tackler. Molyneux was a regular in the Liverpool side for six of the eight years the club was in the Second Division. In his last season, 1961/62, Shankly had finally found the right mixture of players to take Liverpool to the First Division. With Ron Yeats' arrival Dick White was moved from centre-half taking Molyneux' place at right-back. After featuring in only one game earlier in the season, Molyneux was given a chance at No. 2 in a 1-0 Boxing Day defeat at Rotherham United. Liverpool won the next couple of games but still conceded seven goals in the process. Molyneux was the one who paid the price for the avalanche of goals. That led to Shankly converting Gerry Byrne from the left side to the right and reintroducing Ronnie Moran who had been at the club for ten years at left-back. Liverpool finally got back into the First Division but Molyneux returned to fourth division Chester where he played couple of seasons before cartilage trouble ended his full-time professional football career and he joined New Brighton in the Cheshire County League.

When LFChistory.net asked the 81-year-old John Molyneux in the summer of 2012 what was his most abiding memory from his Liverpool career he told us: "My most outstanding memory when playing at Liverpool was watching the Spion Kop crowd coming down and up the steps like a wave in the sea whenever Billy Liddell was going down the wing towards the Kop."
Appearances per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 229 17 3 0 0 249
1955-1956 32 5 0 0 0 37
1956-1957 40 1 0 0 0 41
1957-1958 40 5 0 0 0 45
1958-1959 37 1 0 0 0 38
1959-1960 38 2 0 0 0 40
1960-1961 39 2 3 0 0 44
1961-1962 3 1 0 0 0 4
A more detailed look at the player's appearances
Apps Minutes Opponent
13 1170 Middlesbrough
12 1080 Swansea City
12 1080 Rotherham United
11 990 Bristol Rovers
11 990 Lincoln City
10 900 Leyton Orient
10 900 Huddersfield Town
10 900 Stoke City
9 840 Scunthorpe United
9 810 Bristol City
9 810 Sheffield United
8 720 Ipswich Town
7 630 Sunderland
7 630 Derby
7 630 Fulham
7 630 Charlton Athletic
6 540 Blackburn Rovers
6 540 West Ham United
6 540 Doncaster Rovers
6 540 Barnsley
6 540 Grimsby Town
5 450 Notts County
5 450 Plymouth Argyle
5 450 Brighton & Hove Albion
5 450 Cardiff City
4 360 Portsmouth
4 360 Luton Town
4 360 Bury
4 360 Port Vale
3 270 Southend
3 270 Norwich City
3 270 Nottingham Forest
3 270 Leicester City
3 270 Hull City
2 180 Aston Villa
2 180 Sheffield Wednesday
2 180 Manchester City
2 180 Leeds United
2 180 Southampton
1 90 Manchester United
1 90 Coventry City
1 90 Chelsea
1 90 Northampton Town
1 90 Worcester City
1 90 Accrington Stanley
Total Venue
127 Home
122 Away
Total Competition
229 League
17 FA Cup
3 League Cup
Total W D L Win % Manager
141 69 32 40 48.9% Phil Taylor
67 33 16 18 49.3% Bill Shankly
37 19 7 11 51.4% Don Welsh
4 3 0 1 75% Caretaker Manager
Goals per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 2 1 0 0 0 3
1955-1956 0 0 0 0 0 0
1956-1957 0 0 0 0 0 0
1957-1958 0 1 0 0 0 1
1958-1959 1 0 0 0 0 1
1959-1960 1 0 0 0 0 1
1960-1961 0 0 0 0 0 0
1961-1962 0 0 0 0 0 0
A more detailed look at the player's goalscoring
Total Competition
2 League
1 FA Cup
Total Goal minute period
1 1-15 minutes
2 31-45 minutes
Total Goal origin
3 Open play
Milestone Appearances
# Date Against Stadium Competition
1 03.09.1955 Blackburn Rovers Ewood Park League
50 20.10.1956 Fulham Anfield League
100 25.12.1957 Grimsby Town Blundell Park League
150 07.02.1959 Bristol City Anfield League
200 23.04.1960 Ipswich Town Portman Road League
Milestone Goals
# Minute Date Against Stadium Competition
1 1 08.01.1958 Southend Roots Hall FA Cup
Related Articles
The magnificent 1961/62 promotion season

John Martin remembers the fateful 1961/62 Liverpool season when the Reds got back into the top division.

Scrapbook
14 March 1962
14 March 1962
Molyneux on the cover of the Evening Express on 7 December 1957
Molyneux on the cover of the Evening Express on 7 December 1957
Molyneux on the front page of the Echo on 13 January 1962
Molyneux on the front page of the Echo on 13 January 1962
Other Clubs
Club Season Club rank League apps League goals Total apps Total goals
Chester City 1949-1950 England Third Division North 32 0 34 0
Chester City 1950-1951 England Third Division North 44 0 45 0
Chester City 1951-1952 England Third Division North 36 0 40 0
Chester City 1952-1953 England Third Division North 5 0 5 0
Chester City 1953-1954 England Third Division North 15 1 16 2
Chester City 1954-1955 England Third Division North 46 0 47 0
Chester City 1962-1963 England Fourth Division 43 0 48 0
Chester City 1963-1964 England Fourth Division 23 0 27 0
Chester City 1964-1965 England Fourth Division 1 0 1 0
New Brighton 1964-1967 Cheshire County League N/A N/A N/A N/A
Total 245 1 263 2