Player Profile

An enthusiastic and tough-tackling left-back whose uncompromising style quickly endeared him to the Liverpool crowd. The charismatic Welshman whose mother was from Dingle in Liverpool became a 'cult figure' on the Kop even though he only actually played for the club during three different seasons. Wrexham manager John Neal was furious when Jones was sold to Liverpool: "The directors went over my head. Now I’ll have to consider if I have any future with the club.” The former self-confessed youth delinquent was 20 years old when Bob Paisley signed him in the summer of 1975 and still a bit "raw". Even though Jones started the season as first-choice he only appeared in 13 first division matches in total that campaign as the gulf in class between the Third Division he left behind and the First Division became too apparent in his performance. The left-back role was also covered by Phil Neal and Alec Lindsay in 1975/76 but a year later Jones had established himself in the first team and only missed three of the 42 League fixtures. His exploits on the road to victory in the European Cup in 1977 were immortalised in a banner that read: "JOEY ATE THE FROGS LEGS, MADE THE SWISS ROLL, NOW HES MUNCHING GLADBACH". Only Manchester United's victory in the FA Cup final prevented it from being possibly the greatest-ever season in the club's history. However, the European victory seemed to be the beginning of the end for Jones who lost his place in the team in January the following season to the ageing but still dependable Tommy Smith.

Jones admits to being like a madman on the pitch but he never shirked a challenge. A clenched fist towards the Kop when Jones ran onto the field became his trademark and got the crowd going, but he got in serious trouble at other clubs when displaying the same passion. He was accused of "inciting riots" and was arrested twice when playing for Chelsea; at Derby County and at Newcastle.

Jones eventually rejoined Wrexham and later had spells at Chelsea and Huddersfield. He finally returned to his first club for a second time before the 1987/88 season and when his playing career ended, he has continued to work at the Racecourse Ground as a coach with the same enthusiasm that he had always displayed as a player. Jones was 'capped' over 70 times by his country and he is still fondly remembered by Liverpool fans as one of the most colourful characters ever to pull on the famous red shirt. "To be honest, I couldn't believe it when Liverpool came in for me in 1975. I had three great years and while I was never one of the household names like Keegan, Clemence, Hughes or Smith, I always had a good rapport with the fans. I think they knew that deep down, I was just one of them."