The rising star of Mark Hughes showed no signs of fading as the 1984/85 season progressed. Establishing himself as a Manchester United regular, the Welsh forward scored 24 goals in all competitions, as he helped the club win the FA Cup. Awarded the PFA Young Player of the Year, Hughes had gained recognition for his aggressive and committed style.
Hughes' game was not solely limited to that of an enforcer. His goals for United showed he knew where the back of the net was, and a dream start to his international career added to his growing reputation. A winner against England on his debut was followed by another goal in Wales' last ever Home International match against Northern Ireland.
The prospect of Hughes and Ian Rush forming a formidable strike partnership would have filled Welsh supporters with optimism ahead of the 1986 World Cup qualifying campaign. Yet when Rush was ruled out of the opening two matches - away to Iceland and Spain - Welsh hopes were immediately deflated.
A 1-0 loss in Reykjavik would ultimately prove costly, with the 3-0 reverse in Sevilla (despite wearing a classic kit) leaving Wales on the brink of failure once again. Hughes scored a crucial winner in a 2-1 win over Iceland, but as Mike England's team prepared for the trip to Hampden Park in March 1985, defeat was not an option.
With Hughes and Rush now in tandem, the Scottish centre back pairing of Willie Miller and Alex McLeish were in for a torrid evening, the Welsh duo combining for the goal that would give Wales their first win in Scotland since 1951. Hughes' strength in holding off McLeish allowed Rush to thump in a stunning long range strike, highlighted the undoubted individual qualities of the pair.
Next up was a clash against Spain at the Racecourse Ground, Wrexham. Despite reaching the final of Euro 84, Spain had shown vulnerabilities in their 3-1 defeat in Scotland. And with Hughes acting as a battering ram in the early stages of the match on Tuesday April 30, the visitors would soon discover that they were in for a testing evening.
Played in a simmering atmosphere - the Guardian report noted the "patriotic fervour at Wrexham's packed little ground" - a crowd of 23,494 would witness Hughes handing debutant Inigo Liceranzu a chastening experience. The centre back would never play for his country again.
Luckily for Hughes, it was Rush who had to escape the attentions of Andoni Goikoetxea, the Butcher of Bilboa immediately making his mark on the Liverpool forward. But Rush would land the first decisive blow when he capitalised on a mistake between his marker and keeper Arconada to give Wales the lead just before the break.
And then came one of the most memorable goals of the decade. An out of this world strike that had to be seen to be believed. When debutant Pat Van Den Hauwe challenged Goikoetxea from Peter Nicholas' free kick in the 52nd minute, the ball looped up just beyond the penalty spot and there seemed little danger. And then it happened.
Bouncing high off of the hard surface, the ball did not sit up invitingly. "We all expected Mark to head the ball on when it came back from Goikoetxea," England commented. "But he responded like the great athlete he is." Leaping up into the air, Hughes twisted his body into a horizontal position, and before you could work out what was going on, unleashed a furious scissor kick that left Arconada helpless.
Everything about the goal was thrilling. The initial leap by Hughes; the scissor kick; the fact that the ball found the top corner of the net; the celebrations on and off the pitch. England felt it was worth the admission price alone. Those lucky enough to be on the terraces probably agreed.
Rush completed the evening with another goal late on, to put Wales top of a group that they had been bottom of before the Scotland match. Amongst the many plaudits coming the way of England and his team, many chose to focus on Hughes' moment of brilliance.
Adjectives flowed to describe the goal. Stupendous, scintillating, magnificent, fabulous, spectacular, breathtaking. The Telegraph's Roger Malone described Hughes' goal as "a 15-yard scissor kick of such acrobatic expertise, power and placement as to qualify as one of the greatest goals of all-time." England agreed: "I can't remember many goals like that either as a player or manager."
Hughes was typically modest when asked about the goal. Thinking the referee had blown for a foul, the 21-year-old decided, "I'll have a go at this, swing my leg at it." But the Telegraph's John Moynihan summed it best of all: "With apologies to Gertrude Stein...a goal is a goal is a goal. But one or two are more than that."
That goal should have come with a government health warning: Don't try this at home. Because for the next year or so that is exactly what many of us tried in training and during kickabouts. We couldn't quite crack it, though; in hindsight, the only thing we might have cracked would have been a rib.
The 3-0 win over Spain maintained Wales' love affair with the Racecourse Ground, extending their unbeaten run at the stadium to five years. Yet financial concerns within the Welsh FA led to the crunch match against Scotland being moved to Cardiff's Ninian Park - after Cardiff Arms Park was ruled out - and although Hughes scored, the 1-1 draw on a night of tragedy ended Wales' chances of reaching Mexico.
The qualification campaign of Wales started and ended with disappointment. Yet at least some of the works between the unsatisfactory bookends provided some highlights. None more so than that Mark Hughes moment in April 1985. "They'll be talking about Hughes's goal for years to come," England said after the win over Spain. He was not wrong.
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