Fred Hopkin

Hopkin was signed by Liverpool from Manchester United in 1921. He had made 74 appearances and scored eight goals in two post-war seasons at United, where his career began in earnest. United were given a fine of £350 at the time for paying Hopkin more than the maximum wage and for promising to give him a cut of his transfer fee which was illegal. Left-winger Hopkin was an 'ever-present' during Liverpool's 1921/22 championship season. Another title followed a year later when Hopkin missed just two matches and scored his first goal for the club against Bolton Wanderers early in March 1923. The goal was followed by a fire in the Anfield Road stand. The joke was that Hopkin was to blame as people were so shocked he had actually scored in his seventy-eighth appearance for the club. The smoke clouded the field of play, but the fire brigade put the fire out and the game could go on and finished with a 3-0 win for Liverpool.

Hopkin was not renowned as a goalscorer, just 12 in ten seasons, but was certainly a provider from his position on the wing for the likes of Harry Chambers and Dick Forshaw during the two championship years and also later in the decade for Gordon Hodgson. Hopkin was an excellent sportsman who used his speed to go past defenders and to win several hurdling competitions. He was so described in the Derby Daily Telegraph in 1926: "Hopkin has turned out to be one of the best investments Liverpool have ever made. His head is now losing its hair, and he may not be as fast as he was, but he can still pull out a rare turn of speed, while as a dribbler he can be elusive. Clings to the touch-line, drops perfect centres, and rarely scores a goal."