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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Geoffrey Twentyman | ||
| Date of birth | (1930-01-19)19 January 1930 | ||
| Place of birth | Brampton, England | ||
| Date of death | 16 February 2004(2004-02-16) (aged 74) | ||
| Place of death | Southport, England | ||
| Position | Central defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1947–1953 | Carlisle United | 149 | (2) |
| 1953–1959 | Liverpool | 170 | (18) |
| 1959–1963 | Ballymena United | ||
| 1963–1964 | Carlisle United | 10 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1960–1963 | Ballymena United | ||
| 1964–1965 | Morecambe | ||
| 1965 | Hartlepools United | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Geoffrey Twentyman (19 January 1930 – 16 February 2004) was an Englishfootballer who is mainly remembered for his links withLiverpool F.C. as both a player and as chief scout.[1]
Born inBrampton,Cumberland, the left-half played for Swift Rovers as an amateur andCarlisle United. Twentyman stood 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) and was a strong, robust player who made his name at Carlisle as acentre-back having been switched there byBill Shankly during his spell as manager of theBrunton Park club.
He was spotted byDon Welsh, who signed him for Liverpool in December 1953 for £10,000, he made his debut on 19 December in a league match against arch rivalsManchester United atOld Trafford. United won 5–1. His first goal came almost a year later on 9 November 1954 in a 2–1 win overHull City in aSecond Division match atAnfield.
Twentyman's signature could not prevent them from being relegated by the end of his first season at the club. All of Twentyman's Liverpool appearances were during the days when they struggled to get out of the Second Division, even though they were finishing consistently just outside the promotion places. Twentyman featured in 184 matches scoring 19 goals before leaving Liverpool.
He went on to become player/manager ofIrish sideBallymena United. Ironically, he left the Reds just nine months before the arrival of his former manager Bill Shankly. After his spell at Ballymena, Twentyman returned to play for Carlisle for a second time, he also went on to representMorecambe andPenrith.
After his retirement Twentyman had a short four-month spell as the boss ofHartlepools United before being replaced byBrian Clough. He was then invited by Shankly to return to Liverpool in 1967 to joinThe Boot Room in the role of chief scout. It was in this role that Twentyman made his name at Liverpool, discovering such talents asIan Rush atChester (£300,000), who became captain and ended up Liverpool's all-time record goalscorer;Phil Neal atNorthampton Town (£66,000), who became skipper and won the most medals by a single player in the Reds history; andAlan Hansen atPartick Thistle (£100,000), who also became club captain and won numerous domestic and UEFA honours to name but three. Twentyman eventually spent 21 years in the role working for the likes ofBob Paisley,Joe Fagan andKenny Dalglish, before he finally left in 1986.
He went on to become chief scout forRangers when former Reds CaptainGraeme Souness came calling.
Twentyman died inSouthport on 16 February 2004, aged 74.
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