June 12th and I'm going back 33 years to 1988 and England's European Championship opener against the Republic of Ireland.
After my successful trip to Mexico I was keen to attend another Tournament Finals and the opportunity to go to West Germany two years later (this was before the Berlin wall came down) was too good to pass up. The trip had been in the planning for several months but my advice to those ever thinking of organising a football trip is: don't plan it in a pub. When people have a couple of beers inside them they'll be right up for it. You have visions of hiring a bus. But by the time it comes around to actually applying for tickets, strangely even the most enthusiastic participant from a few weeks earlier goes quiet and mutters lame excuses about not having the money for tickets, or they can't get the time off work or, worst of all, they can't get permission to go from the missus! And so it was that me and my school pal Russell Morgan (RIP) set off for Germany as the last two standing from the original bus load.
The European Championships have been running every four years (Covid19 permitting) since 1960 and have gradually expanded over time. By 1988 there was a proper Tournament Finals stage involving eight nations (compare that to today's 24) and England, managed by Bobby Robson, found themselves in a Group with the Republic of Ireland, Holland and the USSR. The opening game of the Group was held in the Neckarstadion, Stuttgart. England's opponents, the Republic of Ireland, managed by former England World Cup winner Jack Charlton, had qualified for their first major Finals and their fans were determined not to miss out on the party.
The stadium wasn't full by any means (the attendance was 51,373 with a capacity of 70,705) and was pretty well split 50/50 between those dressed in green and the red, white and blue of the English. It should not be forgotten that the 1980's was a time when "the Troubles" in Northern Ireland were a huge issue with bombings and death being a regular news story. I will never forget returning to our car after the match along with dozens of other English men, the majority of whom were obviously army types stationed with the British Forces on the Rhine. We climbed into the vehicle and started the engine before I became aware that almost everyone else was checking underneath their car for bombs! That thought had never even occurred to me!
A programme was issued for each game following a very similar format. Today's featured issue will set you back around £20 from a dealer but cost only 2 Deutchmarks at the time (these were pre Euros days remember at a time when the Germans still had their own currency). The cover star is tournament mascot Berni Bunny sporting the colours of the German flag.
The game proved to be a disaster for England as Ray Houghton scored for Ireland after just six minutes and then England laid siege to the Irish goal but simply couldn't get the ball into the net, losing 1-0. It proved to be the first instalment of a disastrous tournament for England as they lost both of their other Group games finishing dead last and returning home with absolutely nothing. Ireland were similarly eliminated as the Soviet Union won the Group with Holland taking the other qualifying place. Little did we know it but Holland and the USSR would contest the Final itself a few weeks later so perhaps England and Ireland shouldn't feel too ashamed?
CRB Match No. 563
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