Golden goals: Ian Stewart (1982)

There have been worse home international debuts. As Ian Stewart collected a layoff from Billy Hamilton, the 21-year-old Northern Ireland winger cut inside as West German defenders retreated. Stewart drew back his right foot.

Despite their World Cup heroics, not many could see Billy Bingham's Northern Ireland beating the mighty West Germany as the two nations met at Windsor Park for a Euro 84 qualifier in November 1982. Northern Ireland had only won one match in their last ten - admittedly that one in ten was the memorable victory over Spain in Valencia - yet Jupp Derwall's West Germany looked an intimidating prospect.

England and the last eight

Supporting the England football team really should come with a government health warning. Tournaments come and go, hopes and expectations grow as the journey begins, until we arrive at the inevitable destination of disappointment twinned with despair. You think we may have learned by now. 

The first tournament I followed should have prepared me for this. England did not even make it to Euro 84, as a superb Danish team - laughingly dismissed by the English press - qualified and piled pressure on Bobby Robson. Things can only get better?

At least Robson took us to the quarter finals at Mexico 86, yet this would give me a first taste of finals frustration. Since then it has been a mixed bag when England have reached the last eight of major tournaments. There have been a few doses of luck - both good and bad - tears, penalties, a broken bone, winking, strangely comfortable wins, and a penalty in 2022 that still has not landed.

England at Euro 88

England went to West Germany as one of the favourites to win Euro 88. What followed was a nightmare from start to finish that threatened the future of both manager and the national team.

It's not unusual for the national press to go slightly overboard when assessing the prospects of England just before a major tournament. Rightly or wrongly, many squads have departed for World Cups and European Championships with a nation expecting. Germany 2024 will see the hype ramped up to 11.

You can see why many see this as the ideal opportunity for England to end all those years of hurt. The squad Gareth Southgate has at his disposal - certainly from an attacking point of view - suggests England can go one stage better than 2021. But whatever happens, it surely has to be better than their last European Championship in Germany.

Golden goals: John Hewitt (1983)

It seems some footballers are not content with just one golden goal in their career. Some get a little greedy, gorging on the glory, delighting at making their mark in history. In 1983, Aberdeen's John Hewitt achieved this and some, inflicting pain on two European giants and cementing his place in the Dons' Hall of Fame.

This piece could just as easily be about that winner on that rainy night in Gothenburg. But before Hewitt's header against Real Madrid came a goal on a memorable evening in the north east of Scotland that surely must rank as the most remarkable in the history of Aberdeen's Pittodrie stadium. You can't have one without the other.

1985: England in Mexico

If you're a football lover who doesn't like cricket then I feel for you, as Chaka Khan might say. Those long summer months can be hellish without any action, as you count down to pre-season tours, friendlies, and the beginning of a new campaign that may just be the year that your club shines (or not).

The last few summers have been slightly unusual. Euro 2020 took place in 2021, and due to money the climate in Qatar, the 2022 World Cup has been pushed back to November/December. We do have the World Cup play-off and the Nations League to keep us going, but there is nothing quite like a proper summer tournament.

1982 World Cup A to Z

I compiled an A to Z of Mexico 86 four years ago, so I thought I'd give Spain 82 the same treatment.

1986 World Cup: Uruguay

Uruguay entered the 1986 World Cup as one of the favourites; they left with their reputation in tatters.

Like it or not, there has always been a place in sport for a pantomime villain. The kind of behaviour that generally unifies opinions, as a competitor or team acts in a way that brings derision from all quarters. Think of the 1982 and 1986 World Cups, and the names Harald Schumacher and Diego Maradona immediately spring to mind.

1986: The Miracle of the Grotenburg

Basel, Porto, and Besiktas will have their work cut out to overturn first leg deficits in the Champions League. If they need inspiration, they should take a look at the Miracle of the Grotenburg in 1986.

With just 32 minutes remaining in the second leg of their 1985/86 European Cup Winners’ Cup quarter final match, you could have forgiven many Bayer Uerdingen fans for taking a glance towards the exits. Losing 5-1 on aggregate to East German rivals Dynamo Dresden, Uerdingen needed a miracle to score the five goals required to make it through to the last four of the competition. They needed the Miracle of the Grotenburg.

1986: Hockey World Cup

Hockey was hardly a popular sport in UK during the 1980s, but for a couple of weeks in October 1986, all this changed.

I have to admit that the sport of hockey had not registered much on my radar during my formative years. There were the occasional matches played at Wembley on ITV's World of Sport, but these were of little interest to me. Generally, the sport was perceived very much as a jolly pastime, a female activity lumped into the same category as netball, and certainly not part of PE at my local school.

1980s: European Championships A to Z

This week I am attempting to compile my own A to Z of the European Championships in the 1980s, from Arconada to Zenga, taking in mascots, balls and lippy Maltese goalkeepers along the way.

1984 European Championships

Looking back on the 1984 European Championships, which despite the lack of British and Irish representation, managed to limp on nonetheless. A tournament involving French flair, an early exit for the holders, penalty anguish for one of the stars of the championships, and tragedy. Just a shame we didn't get to see more of it. 

Euro 1984 qualification: Northern Ireland

After Northern Ireland's flying start to the qualification campaign of Euro 2016 a lot of references have been made to the fact that they have never qualified for a European Championships finals tournament. Hearing this, my mind drifted back thirty years or so to the nearest of near things, a time when Northern Ireland defeated West Germany home and away, and came within ten agonising minutes of joining the finalists at France 1984. An attempt at qualification so inspiring and full of pride, yet so frustrating and tinged with regret. From the highs of Hamburg to the anguish in Ankara, the story of Billy Bingham's brave men warms the sporting soul, as the underdogs nearly pulled off the impossible.

We probably should not have been too surprised by the eventual progress made by Northern Ireland. A successful 1982 World Cup had seen the team make the second group stage, their win with ten men over hosts Spain in Valencia the finest example of the Irish ability to punch above their weight and defy the odds. However, it would take an upset of David versus Goliath proportions for manager Billy Bingham to lead his country to Euro 1984. Reigning European champions and 1982 World Cup finalists West Germany had been drawn in Group Six, and realistically it looked like a straight fight between Northern Ireland and Austria for the runner-up position. And as Northern Ireland would sadly discover, the so-called minnows of the group in Turkey and Albania would also provide stern tests at various stages.