Hard Man: Hard Game

Laurence Valentine Lloyd—Larry Lloyd—was one of the toughest, most uncompromising players in his heyday. His strength and battle-hardened nature saw this defender win league titles and European cups throughout an illustrious career. Signed from his hometown club, Bristol Rovers, by legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly, Lloyd soon became a regular in the Liverpool team. Alongside skipper Tommy Smith he became renowned as being one half of the toughest defense in the game; no mean feat considering this was in the 1970s, when football really was a tough game. Making his first appearance for England in 1971, under Sir Alf Ramsay, Lloyd's career went from strength to strength. Liverpool stormed to a League and UEFA Cup double in 1973—a season in which he didn't miss a single minute of the 54 games—and it seemed there was no stopping this indomitable defensive force. But disaster struck in the following season when an injury saw him replaced by up-and-coming Reds' hero Phil Thompson, and Larry Lloyd was sold on to Coventry, where it was thought his best years were behind him. Those doubters were silenced through the astute eye of one of the greatest managers, not to mention characters, the game has ever seen: Nottingham Forest's Brian Clough. Signed in 1976, Lloyd's towering and intimidating presence in the defense saw him become part of the infamous "Brick Wall" as Forest secured a host of trophies, including a league title, League Cups, and—miraculously—back-to-back European Cups, breaking Liverpool's stranglehold on it. Moving on to management and then as an outspoken pundit for a radio station in Nottingham, where he is still loved by the Forest faithful, Larry Lloyd is one of the game's great characters. Shirking no challenges, Larry tells all about his tough childhood, how his blind father never got to see him play, and the impact the Heysel Stadium and Hillsborough disasters had upon him. His is a genuine, often heartbreaking story of blood, sweat, and tears, at a time when strength, integrity and the will to win—not fancy cars, trophy girlfriends, and a ballerina's gait—were the hallmarks of great players.