A black Liverpool FC fan said he was spat at and subjected to vile racist chants in the Kop's Boys' Pen during his first trip to Anfield.
LFC fan Tony Excell spoke with former player John Barnes to reflect on the terrible experience he had during his first visit to Anfield in the 1970s. Mr Excell, from Toxteth, told Barnes how he was the only black person at the match after being invited by a white friend.
Mr Excell, who works with the Anthony Walker Foundation, spoke to Barnes as part of Liverpool FC's ongoing coverage of Black History Month. In a video on LFC's website, the pair spoke candidly about how Mr Excell's first visit to Anfield was marred after he was subjected to racially abusive chanting from the crowd.
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Mr Excell said he remembers what coat he was wearing on the day because he left the match with it covered in spit. He told Barnes: "I had a snorkel coat on and I remember this because it ended up covered in spit and other things."
Mr Excell added: "I can feel it now. I was a scared boy. I was not valued as a person...I was not even viewed as human."
Barnes told Mr Excell how he noticed the lack of black people at Anfield when he joined the club in 1987. He had come from Watford where he said, although there was racism in the crowds, black people still went to the match.
Mr Excell said his experiences at Anfield tarnished his support for the club. But he added it also was a driving force for him to bring about change in Liverpool and challenge the behaviour.
The Toxteth man has since worked with Liverpool FC 's Red Together Initiative on invitation from Rishi Jain, senior equality, diversity and inclusion manager at the club. He said he attended a match recently and didn't hear any racist chanting. Mr Excell said: "I did not hear any racist chanting but my hope was that if it happened, someone who wasn't black would have challenged it. We're all in this together."
Mr Excell pointed to the diversity of the LFC team as one of the key reasons why Anfield was racism-free during his last visit. He said when he was younger the people of Toxteth looked to Howard Gayle as a role model. He said: "[He] was one of us. We believed we could be that."
He said: "One of the things I think can change is that we see more people who look like me and you (Barnes) that people can identify with. Mr Excell added: "If I see someone who looks like me as a teacher, that inspires me. If I see someone standing up, speaking confidently who looks like me, that inspires me.
"Hopefully there will be people who look at me and think if he can do what he has, then I can do better."
Rishi Jain, senior equality, diversity and inclusion manager at Liverpool FC, said: “As a club we look to promote the importance of racial equality all year round as part of our Red Together programme, which strives to drive out all forms of discrimination to ensure everyone feels welcome at LFC.
“ Black History Month does provide us with a platform to celebrate and highlight the invaluable contribution that the black community has had on the success and history of our club, which we are immensely proud of. It also allows us to amplify our message to fans and the wider football community to play their part by challenging hate and discrimination, which has no place in sport or society.”
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