sport news Glory in for the 'Anfield Iron': Tommy Smith obituary

The greatest goals - the really special ones - are accompanied with commentaries that can be recited, word for word, at any given moment.

These are the goals that made history and ensured their scorer's place in history. On May 25, 1977, on a balmy night in Rome as his boyhood club conquered Europe, the man they called the 'Anfield Iron' elevated himself into the pantheon.

'Oh yes!' proclaimed the BBC's Barry Davies. 'And what a delighted scorer! It's Tommy Smith! Look at it again! Oh what an end to a career!' The joy in Davies' voice reflected the story and achievements of Smith, who gave his life to Liverpool. He was a stalwart in the truest sense, his journey taking him from the terraces to the pinnacle of the game as Liverpool beat Borussia Monchengladbach to win their first European Cup.

Liverpool legend and former captain Tommy Smith has passed away at the age of 74.

Liverpool legend and former captain Tommy Smith has passed away at the age of 74.

Defender Smith scored for Liverpool in the 1977 European Cup final against Monchengladbach

Defender Smith scored for Liverpool in the 1977 European Cup final against Monchengladbach

Smith and Liverpool team-mate Emlyn Hughes paraded the European Cup around Anfield

Smith and Liverpool team-mate Emlyn Hughes paraded the European Cup around Anfield

Smith, who passed away peacefully in his sleep aged 74 on Friday after succumbing to dementia, was destined to wear a Red shirt. He grew up in the shadows of Anfield, worked as a groundsman at the stadium and painted the old safety barriers on The Kop.

But there was more to it than just passion and determination and it was through his ability and uncompromising strengths as, first, a midfielder then a defender he became one of the cornerstones of Bill Shankly's great teams.

Everyone knows how dominant Liverpool became during the 1970s and 1980s but it is only when you consider the honours that someone such as Smith accrued - and the amount of games he played - that you begin to appreciate what their achievements.

'Tommy Smith wasn't born,' Shankly once said. 'He was quarried.' In total, he made 638 appearances for Liverpool; he won the UEFA Cup twice, a European Super Cup, four league titles and two FA Cups to go alongside that shimmering European Cup; Smith was hard in every sense and would

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