When The Football League Conquered The World (sort of)

If you were to think of a game these days featuring a predominantly English side and a team called The Rest Of The World, you could probably be forgiven for thinking about Soccer Aid, ITV’s now-annual charity jamboree that usually sees the internet questioning whether ‘Angry Ginge’ could cut it in the National League (he couldn’t) or providing a memorable moment where your favourite mid-2000s indie guitarist lobs a former England goalkeeper (2012 in case anyone is interested), 

In 1987 though the concept took on a very serious meaning as the 1987-88 season was to be one like no other and as The Football League prepared to celebrate it’s 100th birthday, the big guns rolled into town to help mark the occasion. 

On August 8th 1987, just a week after First Division champions Everton had claimed the Charity Shield with a 1-0 win over FA Cup winners Coventry City, the eyes of the football world returned to Wembley Stadium as The Football League threw down the gauntlet to some of the world’s best to play for (one incarnation of) The Mercantile Credit Trophy. 

The home side were led by the two Robson’s, managed by Bobby and captained by Bryan and would feature no less than six of the squad that would be on the plane to West Germany for Euro 88 at the end of the season in the shape of Peter Shilton, Kenny Sansom, Chris Waddle, Neil Webb, Peter Beardsley and the aforementioned captain (in fact of the English players selected for this game only Steve Ogrizovic, Clive Allen and Alan Smith would miss out on the Euros). Scotland were represented by Tottenham’s Richard Gough (just before his departure to Rangers) and the Chelsea duo of Steve Clarke and Pat Nevin. Manchester United’s Norman Whiteside was joined by his international team-mate and Northern Ireland captain John McClelland of Watford with the Republic of Ireland represented by West Ham’s Liam Brady and ooh ahh Paul McGrath. To round out the Football League XI, 35-year-old Ossie Ardilles was the only overseas player in the team. 

In terms of the opposition, the big name was Diego Maradona who made his first appearance on English soil since his infamous ‘Hand Of God’ a year earlier at the 1986 World Cup (at a rumoured fee of £100,000 no less). Joining Diego in the World XI, managed by Terry Venables, was France’s Euro 1984 winning captain Michel Platini, Brazilian right-back extraordinaire Josimar, German Thomas Berthold, future Liverpool defender Glenn Hysen, USSR superstar and 1986 Ballon D’Or winner Igor Belanov and the latest darling of the Camp Nou, one Gary Winston Lineker who had just completed his first season with Barcelona and fully endeared himself to the blaugrana faithful with 20 goals in his first season in La Liga including a hat-trick against fierce rivals Real Madrid. 

As for the game itself, it was an entertaining encounter with both sides creating chances in the first half, Lineker being guilty of missing two that on another day he would have probably scored with his eyes closed while Peter Beardsley fired narrowly over Soviet ‘keeper Rinat Dasayev’s crossbar before Neil Webb forced him to into making a clever save following a smart chipped effort. Eventually, in the 23rd minute the breakthrough came as Bryan Robson met Kenny Sansom’s deep cross at the back post with a typically robust header that rendered Dasayev helpless. 

The second half saw an onslaught of substitutions as well as the Football League XI extending their lead. First of all, Norman Whiteside (a man who loved a Wembley goal having scored under the twin towers in the 1983 League Cup final, the replay of the same year’s FA Cup final and of course his memorable winner against Everton in the 1985 showpiece) stabbed home from just outside the six-yard box following Liam Brady’s pull-back. After Neil Webb had seen his goal ruled out for offside, the man known by the Old Trafford faithful as ‘Stormin’ Norman’ turned provider as his low pass was met by Bryan Robson (almost in the same position as Whiteside’s goal) to double his personal tally for the afternoon by firing past sub goalkeeper Andoni Zubizaretta. 

Undeterred, the World XI created chances of their own with Maradona (firmly in his role as pantomime villain with every touch of the ball roundly booed by the 60,000 Wembley crowd) pulling the strings in midfield. For all their efforts, the World XI were thwarted by the Football League’s unlikely hero on the day, John McClelland. Firstly, the big Northern Irishman cleared Igor Belanov’s shot off the line before coming up with a smart block to deny Julio Alberto after he had rounded substitute Steve Ogrizovic. There was even time for Danish forward Preben Elkjaer to hit the post from close range before the game was done. 

‘Fergie sign him up! Fergie Fergie sign him up!’

After referee Keith Hackett (Sheffield) had blown the full-time whistle, there was still time for one more star turn as everyone’s favourite viagra salesman Pele was on hand to present winning captain Bryan Robson with the trophy in one of Wembley’s least remembered presentations, Robson actually looked somewhat embarrassed to receive the trophy. 

And in terms of the Football League’s centenary celebrations, that should have been it. Instead the wider footballing public were ‘treated’ to a plethora of events to mark the League’s 100th birthday. Aside from plenty of off-pitch commemorative events such as music concerts and gala gatherings at the Albert Hall, Wembley played host to the ‘Football Festival’ weekend in April 1988, a poorly attended tournament that had originally been envisaged as all 92 league clubs playing 6-a-side and scaled down to a 16-team tournament with shortened games which was won by Nottingham Forest (qualification was determined by league results within a window of fixtures in later 1987. In fact the competition was that poorly attended that Forest manager Brian Clough didn’t attend the Saturday of the competition. Neither in fact did most of the London clubs with Wimbledon the capital’s only representative. 

The ‘fun’ didn’t end there either, it limped on into the following 1988-89 campaign with the top eight First Division sides playing off in the Football League Centenary Tournament. The ‘showpiece’ event being a final at Aston Villa in October 1988, fitting considering William McGregor was the driving force behind the formation of the Football League. In case you’re interested (you never know it might come up in a pub quiz), Arsenal won the competition by beating Manchester United 2-1 in front of just over 22,000 hardy souls thanks to goals from Paul Davis and Michael Thomas. 

So there we have it, a look back at the Football League’s centenary celebrations. I think it’s important at this juncture to take a moment and be thankful that none of us will be around to see the Premier League’s 100th birthday because let’s be honest, the thought of that terrifies me!