Roger Hunt

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Making his Liverpool debut in 1959, during Hunt's eleven years with the club he was top scorer for eight seasons in a row, and he was the club's record goalscorer until being overtaken by Ian Rush in 1992. He remains Liverpool's record league goalscorer having surpassed Gordon Hodgson in 1969. Under manager Bill Shankly, Hunt won two league titles and an FA Cup. In August 1964 he also scored the first ever goal seen on the BBC's Match of the Day. He was bestowed with an honorary knighthood by Liverpool fans who referred to him as Sir Roger. In 2006 he was ranked 13th on the 100 Players Who Shook the Kop, an official fan poll. In 2026 he was ranked the club's 9th greatest player in another official poll.

In Their Own Story

On 22 August 1964, history was made at Anfield in more ways than one. In a match against Arsenal, Hunt scored after just 11 minutes to help secure a 3–2 victory. This strike became the very first goal ever broadcast on the BBC's flagship programme, Match of the Day, marking a new era for football coverage. Years later, the narrative of his international career took a dramatic turn during the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England. Although he initially partnered Jimmy Greaves, a leg injury to the Tottenham striker saw Hunt play alongside Geoff Hurst in the final against West Germany. Despite scoring three times in the tournament—including twice against France and once against Mexico—the victory brought controversy. A section of southern English fans blamed Hunt, a northerner, for replacing Greaves and booed him in subsequent games. This hostility led Hunt to tell manager Alf Ramsey after a game against Romania in 1969 that he no longer wished to play for his country.

Reader's Guide

Born in Glazebury, Lancashire, Hunt played for Croft Youth Club, Stockton Heath and Devizes Town during his formative years. He was signed for Liverpool by manager Phil Taylor in July 1958, joining from Stockton Heath. Hunt made his debut and scored his first goal for the club on 9 September 1959 in a Second Division fixture at Anfield against Scunthorpe United. He went on to score 286 goals for the club, 244 of them in the league, which remains a club record. After Bill Shankly replaced Taylor, Hunt was retained and was a major factor in the Reds' success in the 1960s. Liverpool gained promotion to the First Division in 1962. Hunt appeared in 41 of the 42 league games and scored 41 goals in season 1961–1962. His goals helped propel Liverpool to an eight point title win over runners-up Leyton Orient and included five hat-tricks. In 1963–64 and 1965–66 Liverpool were English League champions. Hunt again the top scorer scoring 31 goals from 41 games and 29 goals from 37 appearances respectively. On 22 August 1964, Hunt scored against Arsenal after 11 minutes in a 3–2 home win, the first ever goal seen on Match of the Day. In 1965 he was instrumental in the side winning the FA Cup for the first time. In the final, after a goal-less 90 minutes, Hunt scored the opening goal in the 93rd minute and strike partner Ian St. John scored the second as the Reds recorded a 2–1 victory over Leeds United at Wembley. He scored Liverpool's only goal in the final of the Cup Winners Cup the following year, as they lost 2–1 after extra time to Borussia Dortmund. He became Liverpool's record goalscorer on 7 November 1967 in an Inter-Cities Fairs Cup tie against TSV 1860 Munich. His final tally for the club was 286 goals by the time he left the club in 1969 to join Bolton Wanderers, a record that was not broken until Ian Rush 23 years later. He also held the record of scoring 100 top-flight goals in fewer games (152) than any player in Liverpool history, until Mohamed Salah reached the milestone in one game less in September 2021. He signed for Bolton Wanderers in December 1969. In 1971, he moved on loan to Hellenic F.C. in South Africa's National Football League. He retired in 1972, and had a testimonial with Liverpool in April 1972, attended by 56,000 people. Hunt was capped 34 times for his country, with his debut given to him by Walter Winterbottom on 4 April 1962, in a friend

Did You Know?

• Hunt scored 286 goals for Liverpool, making him the club's second-highest goalscorer.
• He scored the first ever goal seen on BBC's Match of the Day in August 1964.
• Hunt was top scorer for Liverpool for eight consecutive seasons.
• He scored on his England debut in a 3–1 win against Austria in 1962.
• Hunt was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2006.