Two Tribes: Liverpool, Everton and a City on the Brink

When the players of Liverpool and Everton walked out into the Wembley sunshine for the FA Cup Final on 10 May 1986, it was not just the culmination of a thrilling season of ding-dong battles between the two teams for silverware. It was proof that no other clubs could compete with them, that no other clubs mattered, and that no city could rival Liverpool for its sporting and cultural importance. The chants rang round the ground, packed with more than 100,000 fans for a match no one could afford to miss: 'Merseyside! Merseyside!' In your face, Thatcher.

This season following the Heysel stadium disaster could not have had more drama. The tragedy of 39 supporters losing their lives in Brussels had morphed into the bitterness of league champions Everton not being able to take their rightful place in Europe. Liverpool themselves were aiming to recapture past glories; both clubs going for the Double, the campaign twisting and turning and going down to the wire. Plus Merseyside was the vibrant, independent heart of both the musical and political scene; Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Derek Hatton its outspoken representatives.

Two Tribes brilliantly recounts those gladiatorial, epic twelve months of turmoil on and off the field, and how it all reached its fitting climax at the home of football, as the population of Liverpool took over London for one unforgettable day. A season that had begun in shame would end in pride, and help redeem the reputation of a city that the game had destroyed.