Liverpool highs: “I don’t think the world has seen team spirit like it.” Liverpool highs: “I don’t think the world has seen team spirit like it.”
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Your parents were okay with their 15-year-old son going to England?

My mum was a teacher – she said the most important thing was my grades, but I said I wanted to go to England. Dad had gone there aged 20 and didn’t make it because he went too late. He said if you’re going to go you have to go young. But the decision was up to Mum. She said, “We’ll pay your fare [though they couldn’t afford it] if you come first in science, maths and English. So I studied like a lunatic for a year and a half and came first. My parents had to sell the house to finance the trip. So it was a pretty big deal.

Initially things didn’t go well, though …

In my first trial we were getting beat 3-0 at half-time. Jack Charlton had a go at everybody, then he pointed to me and asked, “Where are you from?” I said, “Australia.” He said, “Well, you are the worst footballer I have ever seen in my life and you’ll never be one while your backside points to the ground. Now hop it back to Australia.” Though, he didn’t say “hop it”. He totally destroyed me. I burst into tears and didn’t even finish the game. Soaking wet, I went back to the digs, tried to phone Mum and Dad for an hour, which was almost impossible in 1975. But I finally got through. Mum was all excited, asking, “How was the big game? Did Jack Charlton like you?” This, after having sold their house. I said, “Mum, Jack said I’m one of the finest players he’s ever seen and he wants me to stay.” And I hung up the phone before I burst into tears again. And then it was, “Now what the hell do I do?”

What the hell did you do?

Some of the senior players heard about the roasting I got and thought it wasn’t fair. So they said, “If you clean our cars and boots, we’ll give you some money so you can stay somewhere so you’re not out on the street.” So they went against Jack Charlton’s word. They said, “You can train in the car park, next to the mortuary.” Every time Jack would come into work, they’d warn me, “Jack’s coming, Jack’s coming,” and I’d hide behind the cars. Same thing when he left. They all thought it was hilarious.

But it was there where you truly honed your game …

I was in that car park for about a year, maybe 14 months, before Jack moved on. Every day I’d spend hours a day, left foot, right foot, dribbling, passing, shooting, volleying, nine hours a day. I’d train until I was in tears almost, then I’d do all the jobs, and the other apprentices would give me jobs: clean the toilets, clean the sauna, clean the baths after the pros had gone. But it gave me access to the boot room so I could borrow boots. They didn’t know because they were in the pub. I had top-quality Puma, Adidas boots. It was my pay-off.

Lonely times?

It was only two-and-a-half years, but it was nine hours a day, in jail in a car park. I had one job in life, which was to be a better soccer player that night than when I woke up that morning. It was probably the worst period of my life, but looking back it was probably the purest and the best period. I’m almost 50 now, and having been in business, bankrupted, achieved stuff and having everything taken away, you look back and see what was important. And those moments were so desperate and horrible when you had nothing, but they were also the finest, because I had a clear mission.