Joxer goes to Stuttgart

IRELAND’S recent 1-1 draw with England at Wembley wasn’t particularly exciting, apart from the fact that we did not lose. It was also important in that it was the first meeting of the two countries since the abandoned match in Lansdowne Road. Thankfully, there have been other more memorable matches.
Following the foundation of the FAI, what were called the Home Nations – England, Scotland and Wales, were very reluctant to play us. England were in fact the first of those countries to play us but that was not until 1946 when the FAI had already played 32 internationals over the previous 20 years. That friendly in Dalymount Park resulted in a one-goal win for the visitors. The next meeting was much more memorable when Ireland became the first foreign country to defeat England at home. The 1949 match in Goodison Park ended in a 2 – 0 Irish win. The 1958 World Cup qualifying group saw an English win and a draw and then England visited Dalymount for a friendly in the lead-up to their 1966 World Cup win. Two further draws and two English wins brought us up to the first time that Ireland qualified for the finals of a major tournament in 1988. 
Points dropped at home against Belgium and Scotland didn’t make the qualification task any the easier. However, wins in the last three matches and a Scottish win in Bulgaria sent us on our way. At the time, it was a boost for the entire country. Then, as now, things were not great, the country was not very well off and in spite of being a member of the EU, we were still an insular and island nation. The success of the team went a long way in changing that. Fans travelled to countries they had only heard of and coming up to the finals in Germany, no stone was left unturned in an effort to finance the trip. It was very well summed up in Christy Moore’s song, Joxer Goes to Stuttgart.
We did not get out of our group, finishing in third place on three points but ahead of England, who lost their three matches. We won a match, which we could have lost (against England), drew a match we could have won (against Russia) and then lost a match which we could have drawn (against Holland who scored their only goal in the 82nd minute). Going in to that last match, Ireland and Russia were both on three points with Holland on two. A draw would have put us through but alas it was not to be.
Nevertheless, Ireland had finally qualified for the finals of a major tournament and what a fixture for our very first match – meeting England. All our players plied their trade in the English League and England would have considered the match a relatively easy opening. Kevin Moran took a long, free kick, Tony Galvin got the ball in to John Aldridge who headed it to Ray Houghton whose own header finished in the net. The second half was almost all England pressure but they failed to score.
Joxer was in Stuttgart to see Houghton score for a famous win over England on June 12, 1988 – 25 years ago this week. 
n  Michael Torpey