Alan Shearer admits for a few fateful seconds he thought Rovers' title dreams were over.

But the reaction of the crowd, the dug-outs and the directors box made it clear that despite defeat on the final day at Liverpool, Rovers would still be crowned champions.

Rovers went in to the final day two points clear at the top, but when late Jamie Redknapp free kick gave Liverpool a 2-1 lead, Shearer thought their championship hopes had gone, only to learn that Manchester United had drawn 1-1 at West Ham, a result not enough to overhaul Kenny Dalglish's men.

“We lost the game but straight away we realised the title was ours. For a few seconds once that Jamie Redknapp free-kick went in, we thought the title was gone, then seconds later the crowd were going mad, Kenny and Ray Harford were hugging each other and owner Jack Walker was going mad in the directors’ box and we realised the title was ours," said Shearer.

“One of the best days of my career. Making the decision to go to Blackburn was a big decision. I knew that was the project when we first sat down. That was their dream. We deserved it, Jack deserved it and Kenny and Ray deserved it.”

Shearer, an ever-present in the Rovers side, ended with the golden boot, his 34 goals going a long way to taking Rovers to the title.

But he admits there was another player whose contribution shouldn't be overlooked.

“The only odd bit was the atmosphere at Anfield. The Liverpool fans didn’t want United to win the title, they wanted Blackburn to win, for the obvious reasons of Kenny Dalglish. was Blackburn’s manager and everything he means to Liverpool. They wanted us to win it, that was strange. You could sense even the players wanted us to win it.

"It was a huge relief because United were gunning for us and pressing us all the way. Once we got over the line we had to thank West Ham and in particular the goalkeeper Ludo Miklosko, because he put in some outstanding saves. The party went long into the night.”