By the end of his 45-minute cameo, many had taken to clapping each time he received possession and while, sadly, it is unlikely he will ever enjoy the kind of reception his goals and achievements should guarantee, it would be wrong to forget the good times Owen provided.

Mind you, he almost caused a diplomatic incident when shaping as if he was going to take the first penalty of the afternoon; while Carragher wanted Owen to score, the world and his wife demanded the Reds' number 23 take the honours.

Certain wags claimed Carragher would have been more anxious ahead of that spot kick than he was when he last sat a 12-yard test – for England in the 2006 World Cup quarter-finals against Portugal – and there is no doubt he felt some butterflies.

“I was trying to get Michael to score in a Liverpool shirt again,” Carragher explained. “But then it dawned on me that I had to take it and I was terrified of missing it. I thought that's all people would remember me for.”

There is no chance of that. As someone who has put his body on the line for Liverpool since January 1997, Carragher will be remembered for playing a massive role in an era that saw the club win four European trophies and a similar total domestically.

He will also be remembered for the fact he was a rabid Blue during his youth, so it was no surprise he put through his own net here after Joe Cole had put Liverpool three up with a sweet half-volley.

To say Mark Halsey's award was generous would be a gross understatement – James Vaughan could not stop laughing when he fell over with nobody around him – but it provided Carragher with a chance he was never going to miss.

Unfortunately for him, it will be credited in the record books as another own goal and he can rest assured that nobody in Liverpool's history are ever going to get close to having a double figure tally of putting through their own net. It is some achievement.

On a serious note, however, the statistics that matter also make for incredible reading. By the time he hangs up his boots, Carragher should be clear in second place on Liverpool's all time list of appearances and, who knows? There may even be another medal or two.

But he will never forget the day Merseyside came out in force to acknowledge his efforts. There can be no bigger compliment.