(Manchester United News)
Almost exactly a century on, we revisit a scandal which joined Manchester United and Liverpool together on the wrong side of the law…
Despite an enduringly fierce rivalry, perhaps the most astonishing chapter of Manchester United and Liverpool's shared history remains an unlikely tale of collusion – a century old on 4 April - and an affair which would ultimately lead to lifetime bans for seven players and a reshaping of the Football League.
While United's 1914/15 season had been a largely wretched affair, the ability to spring an upset meant that, on face value, a 2-0 win over mid-table Liverpool on Good Friday, 1915, was hardly remarkable. Yet events on the field told an altogether different tale.
"The second half was crammed with lifeless football," reported The Manchester Daily Dispatch
. "United were two up with 22 minutes to play and they seemed so content with their lead that they apparently never tried to increase it. Liverpool scarcely ever gave the impression that they would be likely to score."
The sight of both sides going through the motions irked those in the stands – just an estimated 15,000 supporters – with jeers and catcalls ringing around the sparsely filled stadium. A spectacular first-half penalty miss by United skipper Pat O'Connell added to the peculiarity, while the sight of Liverpool's Fred Pagnam being berated by colleagues after hitting the crossbar with the visitors' only noteworthy effort on goal further aroused suspicions. United manager John Robertson is alleged to have left the stadium in disgust before the end of the game, as George Anderson's brace gave his side a 2-0 success, which went a long way to preserving the Reds' top-flight status. The final whistle, however, was far from the end of the matter.
