The green green class of home

For many Ray Houghton’s match-winning Euro 88 strike for Ireland against England was not only a sporting milestone but also a starting gun for this county’s transformation into vibrant, self-confident nation. Nearly two decades on, he reflects on the historic goal.

Craig Fitzsimons: What’s your recollection of the goal against England?
Ray Houghton: Well, on a personal level it was extra-special – partly because it was England, but mainly cause it was my first international goal. I remember the ball was bouncing about – Tony Galvin had run down the left-hand side, put the ball into the box, and there was a lot of confusion in the England penalty area. It looked like a game of backwards head-tennis, none of them could clear it. I remember it coming to me, and one thing you learn in football is ‘hit the ball back from whence it came.’ If it comes at you from the right, hit it back the same way. It seemed that there was an awful lot of goal to aim at, Peter Shilton wasn’t the tallest keeper in the world. There was an awful lot of room to my left, his right, and I just climbed and got it and it found the net.
Did you expect to get a result, going into the game?
Yeah, I think we did. We knew all the English players inside out, and they knew us. We weren’t afraid of them, by any stretch of the imagination. There seemed to be a lot more pressure on England – there was a lot of hype about them, as there always is. Funnily enough, I think scoring so early put us on the back foot a little bit – we were a bit like ‘what do we do now?’ Packie made some great saves, got a few blocks in. We did just enough, without really playing our best. We sort of went back into defence mode, and sat on what we had and defended it. It worked out, but it wouldn’t be something I’d advocate again. But it was a terrific result.
You joined the squad in 1986: did you realise then what a talented squad we had?
Straight away, that was obvious. John Aldridge came in at the same time, and I remember we always wondered why Ireland hadn’t done better, how come they hadn’t qualified for a major tournament, with players like that. You look at the quality – it was always remarked by everyone in English football, how come these boys haven’t gone further?
Were there any rumblings within the squad about Jack Charlton’s long-ball style of play?
There was more to us than that. There were times we played some very exciting stuff. You look at that game against Russia, which we completely dominated until the last 15 minutes. We should have won by a mile, we hit the crossbar, had two penalty decisions go against us. They were probably the best side in Europe at the time, Holland excepted, but we really put them through it and played some lovely football.
The team spirit seemed to be exceptional...
Yeah, it was. We had a group of players that all got on very well – we didn’t have any big-time Charlies. We didn’t have any little cliques, we were all in it together. We didn’t think in terms of 1 to 11; there were 22 of us. That was how we went about it. If we went out for dinner, we’d all go together. We all found it very easy in each other’s company.
The day against Italy in New Jersey: what do you remember about that?
Going into the game, I wasn’t expecting to play. I was out of sight, Jason McAteer was in. I didn’t expect to get a game, but prior to going over, I went to the gym, got myself very fit, and once I was out there, I trained well and felt great. The day before the game, Jack gave me the nod – ‘you’re in’. I was delighted. The goal itself – it was a long ball downfield, Franco Baresi headed it out but not particularly well. It came to me, and I chested it down. I looked to the left to see if I could pass it to anyone, but the way we played that day, we only had one up front, Tommy Coyne, who’d made a run down the wing so he was out of commission. Steve Staunton was marked by the full-back, and I didn’t really have an awful lot of options. So I thought ‘why not?’ and had a shot, Pagliuca was a wee bit off his line, it sat up lovely for me to hit it, so that’s what I did. The next minute, I seen it sailing over the goalkeeper’s head and hitting the back of the net. I felt sheer relief, joy, all these emotions came out in that one moment really.
Colm Meaney has called it ‘the happiest day of his life.’
It was amazing. Also the fact that going in, we were told there’d be three times as many Italian fans as the Irish, and when we went out, it was the other way round. That really inspired us, how much the Irish fans wanted to be part of it. The noise was incredible, it felt like a home game. And we were up against an amazing team, but everyone played out of their skins, especially Roy Keane and Paul McGrath. McGrath was unreal, considering his age and who he was up against.
Looking back on your time with Ireland, what’s the biggest regret?
The quarter-final against Italy in 1990, in Rome. I don’t think we realised how much the competition was there to be won. We had a chance, but because it was our first World Cup, I don’t think we really believed we could go all the way. There was an element of thinking ‘We’ve already done well’. And if we’d had a bit more belief in ourselves, I’ve no doubt when I look back, the opportunity was there to win the thing. Cause there were no really great teams. England got to the semis, and the Final between Germany and Argentina was one of the worst games I’ve ever seen.
Your old Anfield team-mate Stan is in charge now and having a tough time. What advice would you give him, if any?
Keep your head down, don’t listen to too much media, and have belief in yourself. These are all things I’ve said to his face, cause we are pals. It’s a tough job, it’s similar to the situation Mick McCarthy had when he took over. A lot of the established senior players have moved on – Keane, Steve himself, Niall Quinn, Mattie Holland. A lot of experience went out of the side and he’s had to rely on the younger lads quite a bit. The Kevin Doyles, Stevie Hunt, Shane Long – these lads need to be nurtured, and given time to get used to the pace of international football and everything that goes with it. I wouldn’t panic at all. We just need to be realistic about where we are and what we have. If you look at our current squad, the only ones who’ve won anything are John O’Shea, Damien Duff and Steve Finnan. Robbie Keane’s been around for some time and he’s still waiting for silverware. It helps that the three Reading lads play together, and you’ve another big Irish contingent at Sunderland who are really going places. So they’ll all be full of confidence, and that’ll be reflected when they play at international level.
Is there any realistic chance of getting out of our Euro 08 group?
I don’t see any reason why not. We’ve got to play the Czech Republic away; we outplayed them at home, and should have beaten them. The confidence has grown, you saw that in the Slovakia game. If we can keep our big guns fit – Robbie Keane, Duff, Kevin Doyle – we’ve a chance. We’ve got Germany at home, and they might be qualified by then. We owe Cyprus, after what happened out there, so that game wouldn’t be a huge concern. Right now, we’ve an outside chance. And if we do finish third, there’s still a bright future ahead. Rome wasn’t built in a day.

25 GREATEST MOMENTS IN IRISH SPORT

Ray Houghton's goal against England was undoubtedly the greatest moment in Irish sport, but what about the rest? Here we look at the 25 most treasured moments in Irish sporting history - as well as five we'd rather forget.

1. Ireland 1-0 England, European Championship, 1988
At 2:36 GMT on June 12th 1988, the world changed completely. Ireland’s first match at the Finals of an international football tournament would have been momentous whoever the opposition – but for obvious historical reasons, the fact that it was England served to heighten the occasion. What unfolded that day will never be forgotten: Ardal O’Hanlon isn’t exaggerating when he points out that, for this generation, it was the nearest thing to living through the War of Independence.
The video reveals that Ireland didn’t actually play well that day, but a comedy of errors in the English defence enabled the diminutive Ray Houghton to nip in for a headed goal after six minutes. A nation hit the roof, while Jack Charlton inadvertently loafed the top of his dug-out (“I thought I’d split my head open”).
The next 84 minutes seemed to last at least 10 years: England repeatedly carved open the Irish defence, and sprung Gary Lineker through on goal so many times it was impossible to keep count. Again and again, he found his path blocked by Packie Bonner. The final whistle released an avalanche of euphoria: Ireland’s love affair with the global game had well and truly begun.

2. Ireland 43-13 England, Six Nations, 2007
It was a defining moment way beyond its sporting context. Eighty thousand people crammed into Croke Park, scene of the first Bloody Sunday, closed to ‘foreign games’ for over a century, to watch Ireland take on the old enemy. The 80,000 duly listened to ‘God Save The Queen’ in dignified, respectful silence. Anything else would have been a poor show.
To be honest, there was some validity in Pat Spillane’s observation that “We overdid the PC thing – had Margaret Thatcher appeared on the pitch, we’d probably have given her a standing ovation.” Nonetheless, the moment conveyed a sense of maturity, especially when contrasted with Scots and Welsh audiences who seem incapable of moving past the ‘We Hate The English’ stage.
As for the match, it went like a dream. Ireland laid into the clearly petrified opposition with a combination of manic aggression, passion and tactical intelligence which rendered the Sweet Chariot a mangled wreck well before the half-time whistle. The 43-13 final scoreline speaks for itself.

3. Ireland 0-0 Romania, World Cup, 1990
OK, the game itself was arguably the most uneventful 120 minutes the World Cup has ever witnessed (the Italian press had long since nicknamed Ireland’s group ‘the Group Of Sleep’) but a transfixed nation, high on the delirium of World Cup fever for the first time, mentally kicked every ball, and there are probably some souls who recall the game as a sort of epic chess battle.
The ensuing penalty shoot-out remains eternally etched in the consciousness of every Irish sports fan: Packie Bonner leaping into the path of Daniel Timofte’s timid strike; David O’Leary stepping up to the spot; the agonising realisation that no-one had ever seen him take a penalty before; Liam Brady having kittens in the studio (“C’mon David, put it away”) and then… YESSSS! The earth moved, and it’s still moving.

4. Barry McGuigan vs. Eusebio Pedroza, WBA Featherweight Title, 1985
At a time when Northern Ireland was mired in apparently insoluble conflict, Clones native McGuigan insisted on being a non-sectarian sporting ambassador on both sides of the border, hence the saying “Leave the fighting to Barry.” He turned pro in 1981 and swiftly established a fearsome reputation: he thought about quitting in 1982 after Nigerian boxer Young Ali died following their bout, but decided to stay the course.
McGuigan’s immortality was sealed in 1985 when he faced Panama’s Eusebio Pedroza for the world title. He dominated the encounter from start to finish, dropping Pedroza in the seventh round, and winning on a unanimous decision. Days later, several hundred thousand turned out on the streets of Belfast to demonstrate their gratitude. These days, McGuigan is a Sky Sports boxing analyst, and easily the most eloquent pundit in the business.

5. Ireland 1-0 Italy, World Cup, 1994
By now, we were starting to get used to it, but in pure football terms, Ireland’s display on that baking hot summer’s day in New Jersey ranks as our finest performance on the international stage (with the possible exception of the Soviet Union game in 1988).
In particular, Paul McGrath’s apparently effortless shackling of the immortal Roberto Baggio defied belief. Incredibly, McGrath now claims to have been “60 per cent fit” on the day. Again, Ireland went in front early and stayed there; again, it was the talismanic Houghton who sealed the deal, lobbing Gianluca Pagliuca from some 25 yards. Italy went on to reach the Final while Ireland’s campaign collapsed largely due to heat exhaustion, but for that one day, we looked a match for any team on the planet.

6. The Ryder Cup Comes To Ireland, 2006
The script couldn’t have gone more perfectly to plan. Over three days’ play at the K Club, Europe eviscerated our illustrious American visitors, whose collective demeanour (‘miserable’ doesn’t begin to cover it) grew more and more delightful to behold as the knife twisted deeper and deeper. The actual golf came to be overshadowed by the heart-wrenching scene at the 16th green on the final day, as Darren Clarke, who’d recently lost his wife to cancer, openly and freely wept as he was engulfed in a tide of love, support and sympathy from spectators, team-mates and opponents alike.

7. The Hurling Revolution, 1994-98
It lasted for years, but it undoubtedly qualifies as a ‘moment’. The mid-’90s witnessed an unprecedented democratisation of the All-Ireland hurling championship, as a host of new powers emerged to overthrow the sport’s accepted hierarchy. Offaly got the ball rolling in 1994, coming from behind in the last few minutes to seize the crown from Limerick’s clutches; Wexford then conquered all comers in 1996, while Offaly slew the aristocrats of Kilkenny in 1998. Most memorably, Ger Loughnane’s Clare, a county previously accustomed to first-round defeat on an annual basis, virtually defied the laws of gravity and physics to claim two All-Irelands in three years.

8. Ireland 13-10 England, Five Nations, 1985
They’d already won the championship and the Triple Crown three years earlier, but in terms of pure drama, 1985’s vintage dwarfed the earlier achievement. Hard-earned victories in Edinburgh and Cardiff, either side of a brutally punishing 15-15 draw at Lansdowne with the French, set the stage for final-day glory. As the gods would have it, it was England who stood in the way. The deal was sealed with a Michael Kiernan drop-goal in the last minute, provoking riotous celebrations.

9. Dawn Run, Cheltenham Gold Cup, 1986
Generally known simply as Dawn, this magnificent creature remains the most successful mare in the history of National Hunt racing, and the only horse ever to have won the double of Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup. Ridden on the day by Jonjo O’Neill, she started the race as favourite, but after a bad mistake at the water jump, looked virtually out of contention as she approached the last fence some considerable distance behind Wayward Lad and Forgive’n’Forget. The finale, in which she somehow overtook both, has a claim to be the most remarkable recovery ever witnessed. Many hearts broke when she fell later that year at the French Champion Hurdle, and suffered a fatal heart attack.

10. Offaly vs. Kerry, All-Ireland Football Final, 1982
Kerry were shooting for a fifth All-Ireland title in a row, and Offaly were assumed to be the supporting act on Final day. They matched Kerry stride for stride, but were two points down with two minutes to go, at which point substitute Seamus Darby tucked away what transpired to be one of the most famous goals of all time. Kerry fumbled the ensuing counter-attack, and Offaly claimed the Sam Maguire for only the third time in their history.

11. Spain 0-1 Northern Ireland, World Cup, 1982
Years before the Republic made any impact at international level, Billy Bingham’s Northern Ireland had immortalised themselves, beating World Cup hosts Spain 1-0 on a balmy night in Valencia. The achievement was made all the more remarkable by the stunningly blatant home favouritism of the referee. The heroes of the episode were goalscorer Gerry Armstrong, then-17-year-old winger Norman Whiteside, and the astonishing goalkeeper Pat Jennings, generally cited second only to Peter Schmeichel as the greatest stopper of the modern age. Northern Ireland have yet to come remotely close to emulating the achievement since, but now seem on the verge of a long-overdue revival.

13. Steve Collins vs. Chris Eubank, WBO Super-Welterweight Title, 1995
Though Collins’ slightly abrasive public persona precluded any possibility of him capturing a nation’s hearts in the way McGuigan had, he nonetheless has a strong claim to be considered the best pound-for-pound fighter of the 1990s. His defining moment came against Chris Eubank in Millstreet: it was a complete mismatch. He then successfully defended the title seven times, including two clashes with Nigel Benn.

14. Juventus 2-3 Manchester United, Champions League Semi-Final, 1999
Hardly an Irish sporting moment, I hear you say? Hang on. Roy Keane won this match as close to single-handedly as has ever been seen in any team sport. Two-nil down away to the ruthless Juventus machine, with all hope apparently extinguished, it looked as if Roy decided there and then “I personally refuse to lose this game” and proceeded to deliver. In the process, he picked up a suspension which ensured he’d miss the Champions’ League Final, but there’s simply no way United could have got there without him.

15. Munster 23–19 Biarritz, Heineken Cup Final, 2006
Munster had been the premier European tournament’s ‘nearly men’ for several years, renowned for losing quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals by one-point margins. By 2006, there were unmistakable signs that the team was ready to achieve its holy grail. Having destroyed Leinster in the semi at Lansdowne Road, they entered the final as very slight underdogs against a conservative Biarritz. In a grippingly tense contest at Cardiff’s Millennium stadium, with at least 65,000 Munster fans in attendance, they made the dream a reality. To say that their fans went berserk would be an understatement.

16. Shelbourne v. Rangers, UEFA Cup, 1998
It seemed like a hallucination, possibly even a mirage. The first leg had been switched to Tranmere’s Prenton Park to stave off the threat of loyalist detritus laying Dublin’s city centre to waste. As a contest, it was assumed to be a formality: Dick Advocaat’s multinational crew had been assembled on a budget comparable to that of the English, Italian and Spanish superclubs, while Shels were… well, Shels.
Ten minutes into the second half, the scoreline stood at Shelbourne 3 Rangers 0. It looked too good to be true, and on reflection, it was. In an unfortunate postscript, reality intruded, Rangers woke up, and banged in five goals without reply. But we’ll happily forget that bit. Shels had won, in a manner of speaking.

17. Kilkenny vs. Offaly, All-Ireland Hurling Final, 2000
Now known simply as the ‘DJ Carey final’, and with no disrespect to his team-mates, the accolade is deserved. Carey had long been hailed as the pre-eminent hurler of the age, but entering the Final that year, Kilkenny had yet to win an All-Ireland since 1993. His display on the day was nothing short of stunning, and ensured his immortality, though he wasn’t finished yet and claimed further All-Irelands in 2002 and 2003.

18. Ireland’s First Cricket World Cup, 2007
Though their achievement was somewhat overshadowed by Bob Woolmer’s mysterious death, the Irish cricket team achieved the near-impossible during that heady first week in the West Indies. They seized a draw against Zimbabwe with the last ball of the game, offering a foretaste of what was to come. A few days later, Ireland humbled superpower Pakistan in a seismic shock which caused furious demonstrations on the streets of Karachi. The upshot almost defied belief: hardened auld Dubs sitting in pubs intently watching cricket, and freely indulging in discussion about the sport without fear of any aspersions being cast on their patriotism or their sexuality.

19. Dennis Taylor 18-17 Steve Davis, Embassy World Snooker Final, 1985
To this day, no snooker match has come close to matching the viewing figures for this one, which dragged on well into the small hours of the morning. Nor has there ever been a final as dramatic, with the world title being decided by the last black ball of the last frame. Taylor had entered the Final as rank outsider against the relentless, mechanical efficiency of Davis, but rose spectacularly to the occasion, finally sinking the black just when it appeared the thing might stay in play until the end of time.

20. Eamonn Coghlan, World Men’s 5000m Final, 1983
Four-time Olympian Coghlan had long been recognised as a supreme indoor specialist: his finest hour arrived at the Helsinki World Championships, when he overtook his Russian opponent on the last bend before sprinting home. The look on his face as he did so was the living definition of ‘joy’.

21. Istabraq, Champion Hurdle 1998, 1999, 2000
Take your pick of any of these three triumphs: Istabraq’s status as the greatest hurdler of the modern age is undisputed. His three Champion Hurdle victories were so comprehensive that none of them quite match Dawn Run’s Gold Cup win (see above) in terms of drama, but it’s doubtful whether we’ll ever see his like again.

22. Republic Of Ireland, World Cup, 2002
The Saipan fall-out had overshadowed Ireland’s preparations and threatened to render the tournament a disaster. In the event, it was something of a triumph. Ireland turned in superb displays against Germany and Spain, on both occasions equalising with last-minute Robbie Keane strikes. The shoot-out defeat against Spain was a bitter blow, but we can look back on the tournament with immense pride.

23. Paul McGinley Clinches The Ryder Cup, 2002
With Europe having put themselves in position to avenge 1999’s Brookline incident, it fell to Paul McGinlay to hole a fiendishly tricky 18-foot putt to clinch the trophy. He wasn’t found wanting, and sank the thing in nerveless fashion. His post-match celebrations, drenched in champagne and draped in the Tricolour, were every bit as memorable.

24. Sonia O’Sullivan, World Women’s 5000m Final, 1995
By 1995, O’Sullivan was undisputed as the dominant force in female distance-running. Final validation arrived in Gothenburg that summer, as she completely obliterated the competition: the crowning glory in a career littered with triumphs.

25. Stephen Roche, Tour De France, 1987
Roche remains the only Irishman ever to have won the Tour de France, in an all-conquering year which also saw him win the Giro d’Italia. An official Italian judicial investigation has concluded that Roche was administered EPO in 1993, but to this day there’s no evidence that his Tour triumph was artificially enhanced in any way, shape or form.

AND FIVE WE'D LIKE TO FORGET

1. Compromise Rules
There are moments when sport sheds its nobility and, rather than providing a stage for men (and women) to showcase human nature at its best, becomes the polar opposite. These moments are likeliest to occur when the professional thugs who make up the Aussie Rules Comp-Rules squad roll into town to smash seven bells of shite out of their comparatively genteel GAA counterparts, oblivious to such niceties as the fact that thousands of little kids might be watching. Invariably, they dispense with any pretence of ball-playing, and more or less go bare-knuckled for their opponents’ skulls: there’s enough video evidence from the last two series to be of interest to the Director of Public Prosecutions, were the law to be applied appropriately. Don’t ever come back here again, lads.

2. Ireland 17-20 France, Six Nations, 2007
It doesn’t require the benefit of hindsight to calculate that this was the moment Ireland’s first rugby Grand Slam since 1948 slipped away. It was obvious at the time, so clearly superior were Ireland and France to the rest of the pack. The pair’s meeting (Croker’s baptism as a ‘foreign games’ venue) thus took on an all or nothing, winner takes all dimension. After a tense, attritional encounter of extremely high quality, Ireland led 17-13 with two minutes left. History beckoned, and we buckled under the pressure. A collective lapse of concentration on a grand scale allowed Vincent Clerc (curse his name) to sashay in very Gallic style across the line for the try that, in retrospect, took away that ever-elusive Slam.

3. Macedonia 1-1 Ireland, European Championship, 1999
The former Yugoslavia witnessed many horrifying scenes in the ‘90s, but surely none as distressing as this stoppage-time catastrophe in Skopje. With seconds remaining on the clock, Ireland had qualification for the finals of Euro 2000 firmly within their grasp, 1-0 up against very nondescript opponents. All that was required was to defend a routine corner. We don’t like to point fingers, but Keith O’Neill neglected to mark his man, the Macedonian (whose name I appear to have mysteriously blocked from my memory banks) stole in for a header, the ball hit the back of Shay Given’s net, and Denis Irwin pounded his fists against the ground in embarrassment and fury. Needless to say, we lost the ensuing playoff.

4. Stevie Cruz vs. Barry McGuigan, WBA World Featherweight Title, 1986
After seeing off Pedroza, McGuigan had twice successfully defended his belt against Bernard Taylor and Danilo Cabrera. His third defence was against Texan Stevie Cruz in gruelling Las Vegas heat under a blazing sun. McGuigan looked in control for most of the early rounds, but dehydration eventually caught up with him, and he hit the canvas in rounds 10 and 15, before losing on a close points decision. He required hospitalisation after the match, and never reclaimed his title.

5. Mick McCarthy Booed At Lansdowne Road, European Championship, 2002.
With the Saipan civil war still causing ructions and rows in households from Malin to Mizen, pro-Keane factions were determined to see Mick McCarthy ousted as a precondition of the Mayfield blowhard’s heroic return (which, in any event, didn’t happen till 2004 when he was clearly a diminished force).
Ireland succumbed 2-1 to the Swiss at Lansdowne Road on a frustrating night, but it’s worth noting that the defeat was McCarthy’s first in a home competitive international, after six years in charge. McCarthy never was, still isn’t and probably never will be anyone’s idea of a great manager, but he was an extremely decent skin doing a difficult job to the best of his ability, and the manner in which thousands of ‘fans’ booed him off the park still leaves noxious fumes in the mouth.