When Bill Shankly arrived at Melwood in December 1959, he didn’t expect to be meeting his future son-in-law in the grounds of a disused West Derby cricket pavilion.
“My first meeting with him was in the training ground. I did a few laps with him before the training started,” recalls Vic Gill.
“He wasn't officially taking over but I didn't know who he was. I went down the toilet and this guy came down and stood next to me, asked ‘how old are you son?’ and I said 16 and he said ‘aye, you're a big lad’.
“Then I went out and did a couple of laps and saw the likes of Chris Lawler and Ian Callaghan coming in and Eli Wass (the groundsman) came over to me and said ‘suckhole’ so I asked why.
“He said ‘that's the new manager - Bill Shankly’ and that was the first time I ever met him. Even in that first meeting he just came across as a nice bloke.”
As a fresh-faced youngster in the amateur ranks at Melwood, Gill was pleased to see the exuberant Scot improving training methods on all levels of the playing staff.
“He showed up and took an interest in the youth team which was a real boost. I'd been there for the previous two years under Phil Taylor and I hardly ever saw him at all, certainly not taking part in training sessions.
“The whole training changed from mostly running exercises to doing everything with a ball apart from the warm-ups. It was just brilliant and thorougly enjoyable.
"The original sweat box was filled with sand and had a board at one end with pieces of wood on which you had to keep kicking which I enjoyed after a while, not immediately though!”
Not long after that first meeting, Shankly and Gill came face to face again when the Kop boss’ daughter Barbara formally introduced him in the great man’s home.
“It was a bit frightening but that said I already knew him. At the very beginning Barbara and I were not serious; we were kind of mates and then it grew of course.
“He was always very welcoming I think because he had someone else to talk about football to instead of three women because without the football he was like a bear with a sore bum.”
The couple were married on Saturday 23 January 1965 at 10am due to the father of the bride’s commitments at Anfield.“Liverpool were playing Everton at Goodison and of course Shanks wasn't going to miss that. Neither was I quite frankly so I didn't really mind being at the church at 10am," confesses Vic.
"It was only the ladies really who were a bit upset so early in the morning but it was great. He said a lot of nice things, he had to of course!
“And then the game at Goodison was called off because the pitch was waterlogged so it all seemed to be a waste but my wife and I went off to Weymouth for our honeymoon.”
Unlike most modern managers, Shanks preferred to take his holidays regionally and Gill recalls the standard drill for the annual family trip to Blackpool.
He said: “All holidays were taken in Blackpool, at the Norbreck Hydro Hotel. I went to a few and we'd play football against some of the Italian waiters in the car parks. He could never get away from it really.
“He would get us tickets for the best shows at the Winter Gardens and he would sod off to Preston to watch the dog racing which was his other passion.”
Gill also remembers how Shankly spent time with him at Anfield and even embarked on an impromptu scouting mission with the great Scot to take a look at a player who would lead the Reds’ front line for years to come.
“In November 1970 I got a call from Mr Shankly asking if I wanted to a match with him. It was Tranmere Rovers versus Scunthorpe in the third replay of an FA Cup match," he remembers.
"Kevin Keegan covered the whole pitch; backwards, forwards and scored the winning goal.
“After the game he dropped me off at home and he said ‘what did you think of the game son?’ and I said I really liked the little number ten (Keegan) who covered every blade of grass and he said ‘Aye he was a busy little bugger!’”
Vic’s favourite memory of his legendary father-in-law was not one related to Liverpool FC itself but, as with virtually everything in Shanks’ life, it was football-related.
“After leaving Liverpool I was a driver on the buses and played a bit of non-league football in my spare time. I would represent the Liverpool Transport side.
“We were meant to be playing Kirkby Town on a Saturday but they brought it forward to the Wednesday because they had just installed floodlights and they invited Mr Shankly along for the game.
“It was a very special evening for them and was my first experience apart from training at Melwood of playing under floodlights in a competitive match.
“Before we started Bill came up to me with a box and said ‘I've noticed your boots are getting old son’ and handed me a brand new pair of Gola boots. I put them on and scored a hattrick! It's a personal memory but one I remember in particular because he was a good man.”
Gill, now 66, cannot speak highly enough of a man he was proud to call not only his father-in-law but also as the revolutionary that transformed Liverpool Football Club.
He added: “I feel very proud because above all, not only was he a great manager but he was a good man. He had a good heart and did really love the people of Liverpool. He loved Liverpool FC and he made us what we are today and I feel very proud.”
