Way Back When - the 1984/85 Cup Winners’ Cup

There’s no doubt that both sides here tonight (note - this article was originally written for the match programme for the FAI Cup Second tie between UCD and Belgrove in July 2003) are aware of the ultimate prize at stake – not just the glory of a Cup run and the possibility of even winning, but the European qualification which goes with victory. UCD have experienced the feeling once before – in the 1983/84 season when we defeated Shamrock Rovers in one of the biggest Cup Final upsets in Irish footballing history. Our reward was to be entered in the Cup Winners’ Cup the following year. By now, most people are aware of what happened next – we drew Everton, one of the biggest clubs in England at the time, drew 0-0 in Tolka Park and lost 1-0 in Goodison to a 10th minute goal from Graham Sharp; Ken O’Doherty skimmed the bar towards the end. Everton went on to win the competition and the English league title; UCD finished fourth but were relegated the next season.

But what of the rest of the competition? 32 teams took part – Rapid Wien, Besiktas, Ballymena United, Hamrun Spartans, UCD, Everton, Bayer München (West Germany), Moss FK (Norway), Wrexham, Porto, Metz, Barcelona, Hadjuk Split (Yugoslavia), Dinamo Moscow (USSR), Wisla Krakow, IBV Vestmannyaer (Iceland), Roma, Steaua Bucharest, Fortuna Sittard, B1903 København, Malmö, Dynamo Dresden (East Germany), Trakia Plovdiv (Bulgaria), Union Luxembourg, Larissa (Greece), Bányász Siofok (Hungary), La Gantoise (Belgium), Celtic, APOEL Nicosia, Servette Genf, Inter Bratislava (Czechoslovakia) and Kuuysi Lahti. The holders were Juventus, who of course were Italian champions and were entered in the European Cup, where they went on to win the final after the infamous events at the Heysel Stadium.

UCD’s feats weren’t the only notable performances in the First Round – Hamrun Spartans completed a rare European double for Malta in beating Ballymena United of Northern Ireland home and away. Much more eye-opening, though, were the performances of Wrexham and Metz. Wrexham, who had qualified by virtue of winning the Welsh Cup, by which means Swansea, Newport, Cardiff and Wrexham all qualified for Europe before it was outlawed, drew Portuguese giants Porto and stunned them with a 1-0 home win in the first leg. In the return, Porto stormed into a comfortable 3-0 lead after only 38 minutes, but incredibly, Wrexham hit back with two goals in two minutes just before half-time to take the lead on away goals. A goal from Paolo Futre on the hour mark looked to have sealed Porto’s progression, but with two minutes to go, Wrexham struck again for a 4-4 aggregate draw and qualification on the away goals rule.

Arguably more remarkable, however, was the performance of Metz against Barcelona. The French club looked dead and buried after a 4-2 home defeat in the first leg, and things didn’t look any better when Barca took the lead on the half hour in the Nou Camp. But Metz grabbed two goals in a minute to lead 2-1 and shortly before the hour scored again to make it 3-1 – still not enough to get them through. But with three minutes to go, Kurbos completed a hat-trick for a 4-1 win in Spain and a Second Round place. Rather more comfortable wins were enjoyed by Rapid Wien against Besiktas (5-2), Dinamo Moscow against Hadjuk Split (6-2), Trakia Plovdiv against Union Luxembourg (5-1), Wisla Krakow against Vestmannyaer (7-3) and Servette against APOEL (6-1). Steaua Bucharest, who were to win the European Cup the next season, lost 1-0 to Roma, while Malmö, European Cup runners-up in 1979, let a 2-0 home leg advantage slip against Dynamo Dresden and went out 4-3.

In Round 2, Everton found the going much easier as they cruised to a 4-0 win over Inter Bratislava. Paul Bracewell scored the only goal of the game in Czechoslovakia, while Graham Sharp, Gary Stevens and Adrian Heath secured a 3-0 win in Goodison. Wrexham found Roma a step too far and went out 3-0 overall, while Hamrun Spartans were unsurprisingly crushed by Dinamo Moscow on a 6-0 scoreline, with Valery Gazzayev - who would manage the Russian national team when pipping Ireland to a Euro 2004 play-off spot - notching a first leg hat-trick – his second of the competition. The goals were also his only strikes of the competition, and would be enough to see him finish as top scorer! But the story of the round was in Glasgow, where Celtic were looking to overcome a 3-1 first leg deficit against Rapid Wien. Goals from Brian McClair, Murdo McLeod and Tommy Burns secured a brilliant comeback, but the match was ordered to be replayed due to crowd trouble. The replay was in Manchester, where Rapid won through 1-0.

On to the quarters, and an Andy Gray hat-trick set Everton up for an easy win over Fortuna Sittard. Goals in the away leg from Graham Sharp and Peter Reid sealed a 5-0 aggregate win. Bayer München put out Roma on a 4-1 scoreline with goals from, among others, Klaus Augenthaler and Lothar Matthäus. But it was Rapid Wien who again stole the headlines with another remarkable escape. Trailing 3-0 from the first leg against Dynamo Dresden, they had the tie level on aggregate by half-time in Austria, and when veteran Hans Krankl scored their fifth late on, their rather unlikely place in the semis was confirmed.

In the semis, Bayer München became the first team since UCD to hold Everton, and then became the first team to score against them when taking the lead in Goodison. But goals from Graham Sharp, Andy Gray and Trevor Steven finally saw off the West German challenge and put Everton through to their first ever European final. There they met Rapid Wien, who put paid to Dinamo Moscow largely due to three goals in five minutes which turned their home leg on its head and led to a 4-2 win.

The final was in the De Kuip Stadium in Rotterdam, and almost 40,000 were present to see a scoreless first half. But Everton cut loose in the second period with goals from Graham Sharp and Andy Grey. Hans Krankl pulled Wien back into it with six minutes to go, but Everton went straight up the pitch and scored again through a cracker from Kevin Sheedy. After the match, Derek Mountfield would look back on the campaign and reflect that the toughest match they’d had along the way had been against UCD.

By this stage, the league was sealed, and Everton were in the FA Cup Final looking for the treble. Only Manchester United stood in their way – and did so rather successfully, recording a 1-0 Wembley win after extra time. For the record, Everton’s team in the Cup Winners’ Cup Final was – Neville Southall (c); Gary Stevens, Kevin Ratcliffe, Derek Mountfield (a future manager of Cork City), Pat van den Hauwe; Trevor Steven, Peter Reid, Paul Bracewell, Kevin Sheedy; Andy Gray and Graham Sharp. In goals for Wien was a young Michael Konsel, who kept goal for Austria in the 1998 World Cup, not to mention Austria’s two 3-1 wins over Ireland in qualifying for Euro ’96.