RELATIVES of Bill Shankly and his extended family of Liverpool FC players, coaches and fans remember him more fondly at this time of year.

It was at the end of September in 1981 that the great man passed away but, in the words of the fans’ anthem, his nearest and dearest will never walk alone.

Barbara Alexander, his niece who lives in Cumnock, has worked with the Chronicle and we are indebted to her for the information of another uncle, on her dad’s side, whose career we recall below.

We also look back at other members of the family who played and managed professionally at home and further afield.

Robert Crawford (Laddie)

He was born in 1901, a few miles from Glenbuck, in the village of Glespin.

Following a spell with The Cherries, he signed for Preston North End at the age of 20 and went on to play around 400 times for them ­— including a run of 240 uninterrupted appearances.

From there he joined their local rivals, Blackpool, for two seasons followed by a similar length of duty with Blackburn and Southport prior to retiring in 1938.

It was back to where he started and he became a scout for Preston and recommended his relative ­— Bill Shankly, known as Willie to his family ­— what a piece of business that was.

For more Glenbuck coverage, including photos and details of Bob and John Shankly's careers, see this week's paper, only 90p