Stories from the beautiful game past and present - All written by James M. Gowland. From amateur to professional, from home and abroad. Particularly, but not exclusively, German football and also a bit of groundhopping. (twitter @jimmylad86)
Probably not too many people outside of the North East are aware of Whitley Bay Football Club but Preston North End fans of a certain age certainly will be! In 1989, Preston then of the old Third Division visited the North East coast to face the non league side in an FA Cup second round tie and a packed crowd of over 3,000 witnessed one of those classic cup shocks. In front of John Motson and the Match of the Day cameras, Whitley Bay then of the Northern Premier League triumphed by two goals to nil to reach the FA Cup Third Round for the first and only time in their history and send Preston home with their tales firmly between their legs. Although I wasn't present on that famous day I have over the years seen several cracking FA Cup ties at Whitley Bay's Hillheads Park home and the most recent came last Saturday. I was there on a warm but damp summers day as Whitley Bay began another cup campaign, however, this being the extra preliminary round stage it was light years away from the third round, or to be precise eight victories. The visitors were Hebburn Town a club on the up. Suffering financial problems several years ago new investment had seen them finish second in the EBAC Northern League last season. The Northern League sits at step five in the non league pyramid and with extra promotion places this time around due to pyramid restructuring Hebburn are no doubt aiming for one of those spots. Playing in the same division, after a somewhat successful past Whitley Bay have been struggling in recent years finishing as low as thirteenth the previous season during which they lost 9-0 at home to none other than Hebburn Town. Whitley Bay never did make it to Wembley in the 1989-90 season losing 1-0 away at Rochdale in round three, but they are a club who later made a name for themselves, at least in these parts, by reaching three Wembley finals in a row and winning them all. The Bay's Wembley successes came in not the FA Cup but the lesser known FA Vase, a competition for clubs in the lower reaches of non league football. Whitley Bay first won the competition in 2002 when the final was played at Villa Park whilst Wembley was being rebuilt and then won it at the home of football three seasons running in 2009, 10, and 11. Other than Billericay Town who have a trio of Vase Triumphs no other team has won the competition more than twice.
Situated next to an ice rink, Hillheads Park is one of the more impressive grounds in the Northern League with an excellent main stand on one side and covered terracing on the other, the latter being the only real upgrade since 1989 and that Preston game. There is in fact terracing most of the way around the pitch and proper concrete terracing to boot I must add! The ground has a definitely more than acceptable club shop for the level they play at which sells various club related trinkets and also has a couple of shelves of second hand football books. There is also a storeroom jam packed full of old programmes for sale from numerous matches involving clubs at all levels. Quite a collection. The Seahorse Pub clubhouse also does a roaring trade on match days as does the resident burger van, and Tommy's tea hut, named after club stalwart Tommy Moody who recently passed away.
If you want to visit Hillheads it's a twenty minute walk from Whitley Bay town centre. Ten miles from Newcastle Upon Tyne Whitley Bay is situated right on the coast just north of the mouth of the River Tyne and has over the years been a popular seaside tourist destination, albeit not quite as famous a name as other English seaside towns. It's once bustling nightlife has quietened down a little in recent years with the pubs and bars of nearby Tynemouth currently proving more popular, but until recently bank holiday drinking sessions in Whitley Bay used to be very much a top attraction in the area. One pub is formerly a fire station. The town is perhaps most famous for the Spanish City indoor funfair with its iconic dome. Although the building fell into disrepair in the 1980s, it recently reopened fully refurbished with a couple of upmarket bars and restaurants as well as a function room for weddings. One wonders if this might help reinvigorate the town's nightlife? The local coastline has some excellent beaches in particular Longsands beach in Tynemouth. Tynemouth also has an impressive aquarium, whilst nearby North Shields has a very popular fish quay which like the Spanish City is an excellent choice for food and drink.
You could spend all day sampling the delights of Whitley Bay and the surrounding areas but if you are like me you would no doubt before long end up at the town's football ground, and my FA Cup visit saw the hosts 2-1 down at half-time. Brad Hird ran onto a through ball and rolled it past the keeper to give the home side the lead but Whitley then conceded two penalties. Former Newcastle United youngster Louis Storey was brought down and Graeme Armstrong slotted home from the spot on 38 minutes to draw the sides level whilst three minutes later he fired home again from spot to put the visitors ahead having been himself fouled in the box. A header after latching onto a free-kick saw Storey put Hebburn 3-1 up early in the second-half and 3-1 soon became four thanks to an own goal from Callum Anderson. Armstrong then completed his hat-trick with a third penalty after he'd been pushed in the back whilst two late goals for Hebburn completed the rout. In the 84th minute, Thomas Bott was sent off for a second bookable offence and shortly afterwards a cross from Carl Taylor saw a bullet header from Jack Donaghy make it six whilst in acres of space on the right hand side Taylor was able to find the far corner to make it seven just before the end. 7-1 to Hebburn was the full-time score, not quite as impressive as last season's result here but I'm sure they won't complain too much! As the match drew to a close the visiting support in the 448 strong crowd were belting out Belinda Carlisle's 'Heaven Is a Place on Earth' with an obvious amendment to the lyrics. Excellent stuff from the Hebburn fans and I can confirm Hebburn definitely is an actual place on this planet, my uncle lives there! The home support might not have enjoyed the game but for the neutral, it was an excellent day out at a first rate non league venue. Hillheads Park is one of my favourite non league grounds in the region, it's just a shame they don't have a better team to play there.
Germany’s DFB-Pokal (Cup) got underway this weekend with sixty four teams comprising of last seasons Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga sides, the top four teams from last season’s 3.Liga, and varying other selected teams including the winners of Germany’s Regional Cup competitions with these usually open to teams from the third tier and below. The competition is seeded and lower-ranked teams are given home advantage. On Friday night there was a trio of matches. 1985 pokal winners third tier KFC Uerdingen temporarily playing their home games in Düsseldorf whilst their own ground is being upgraded went down 2-0 to top flight visitors in the shape of Borussia Dortmund whilst 3.Liga side FC Ingolstadt lost 1-0 to 1. FC Nürnberg of the 2. Bundesliga and Borussia Mönchengladbach won 1-0 at second tier side SV Sandhausen thanks to a nineteenth minute goal. Saturday saw two Bundesliga giants suffer defeat at the hands of lower division opposition. 1. FSV Mainz 05 went down 2-0 away at third tier 1. FC Kaiserslautern who were themselves in the top flight no so long ago. A 53rd minute penalty from Manfred Starke put the home side in front and they grabbed a second in the 90th minute. A crowd of 4,198 packed into the Sportclub Arena as Regionalliga minnows SV Verl appearing in the pokal for the first time in nine years hosted FC Augsburg, the home side were 2-0 up after 23 minutes and although the visitors pulled one back from the penalty spot seven minutes from time Verl held on for a famous victory. Third tier Würzburger Kickers lost to top flight opposition on penalties, the club came from 2-0 down to force extra-time at home to 1899 Hoffenheim and goals for Hoffenheim on 99 minutes and Würzburger on 114 minutes saw the tie finish 3-3 before Würzburger missed two penalties to lose the shoot out 5-4 in front of over 10000 spectators at the Flyeralarm Arena. It was a case of tenth time still unlucky for fifth tier FC 08 Villingen, the club had appeared in the competition nine times previously and lost in the first round on each occasion - appearance number ten would not halt that run though the club did not disgrace themselves Over 8000 spectators saw them take a 42nd minute lead from the spot at home to Fortuna Düsseldorf but the visitors ran out 3-1 winners after extra-time. Amongst other results, Saturday also saw comfortable wins for Bundesliga sides Bayer Leverkusen and Schalke 04. On Sunday, 2-0 and then 3-1 down Regionalliga side SV Rödinghausen forced extra-time at home to Bundesliga returnees SC Paderborn thanks to a brace from Lars Lokotsch. But with no further goals, the tie ended 3-3 and the visitors won 4-2 on penalties to disappoint most of the 2,236 crowd at the Häcker Wiehenstadion. Three more matches on Sunday were decided on penalties. Newly promoted second tier side Wehen Wiesbaden came from 2-0 down to secure a draw with 1. FC Köln and came from 3-2 down in extra-time to force a shoot out which they lost 3-2 whilst third tier Chemnitzer FC lost 6-5 on penalties to second tier Hamburger SV after a 2-2 draw. As for the third shoot out, 2. Bundesliga side FC St. Pauli came from 2-0 down after 55 minutes to lead fourth tier VfB Lübeck 3-2 in extra-time but Lübeck then equalised to force the penalty kicks and St. Pauli won the shoot-out 4-3. Lübeck's previous pokal appearance had seen them lose 3-0 to the same opposition three years earlier. Second tier VfL Osnabrück lost 3-2 at home to RB Leipzig whilst Leipzig were joined in round two by fellow Bundesliga sides Werder Bremen, Hertha BSC, and Union Berlin who all won comfortably on Sunday. Monday saw the final games of round one and Mathias Fetsch scored in the second minute of injury time to secure a 3-3 draw and extra-time for third tier Hallescher FC against top flight VfL Wolfsburg, but Wolfsburg scored twice in extra-time to win 5-3. Holders FC Bayern München meanwhile won 3-1 at fourth tier FC Energie Cottbus. Results in full:
Some were sat on the rooftops of overlooking houses trying to catch a glimpse whilst thousands more crammed onto the terraces below, and that day they would watch something truly sensational. West German Second Division (2. Bundesliga) side SC Fortuna Köln had one sole top flight Bundesliga campaign to their name whilst visitors Borussia Dortmund (BVB) were three times German champions. It was April 1983 when BVB visited Fortuna for a DFB-Pokal (German Cup) semi final, they were hammered 5-0. For Fortuna, a final against big name crosstown opposition would be in store.
After that stunning semi final victory fans of Fortuna had to wait until two days later to find out who their opponents in the final would be, and when Bundesliga giants and city neighbours 1. FC Köln beat VfB Stuttgart it set up the incredible prospect of an all Köln (Cologne) cup final. This would be and still is, the only time two teams from the same city have met in a DFB-Pokalfinale. Fortuna Köln were essentially minnows in West German football and the club who in 1973-74 spent to date their only season in the top flight had not made their second tier debut until 1967. In 1983 they were managed by Martin Luppen, the man who had overseen their promotion to the Bundesliga ten years earlier had returned to the club in 1980. Drawing far bigger crowds, City rivals FC Köln who were at the time managed by the late great Dutch coach Rinus Michels, had themselves come from humble beginnings, but quickly rose to become founder members of the Bundesliga and had twice won the league title. The previous season they had finished runners up for the third time and would go on to finish fifth that year. In the domestic cup, when they met Fortuna in that 1983 final it was their eighth DFB-Pokalfinale with themselves having won the competition three times previously. Fortuna Köln, however, had never appeared in the final before. Fortuna started their cup run by defeating fellow 2. Bundesliga side SC Freiburg 2-0 at home in round one, Fortuna then faced third tier SSV Ulm away from home. A 0-0 draw after extra time saw a 3-0 replay win at home before a trip to Bundesliga side Eintracht Braunschweig in the next round. In the league, Braunschweig were struggling at the wrong end of the table but against a team from the division below they were expected to book their place in the quarter finals. Fortuna, however, had other ideas. Dieter Schatzschneider who had joined a year earlier from Hannover 96 where he'd scored 131 goals in 160 matches twice found the net in the first half to give the visitors a 2-0 lead. Braunschweig pulled one back midway through the second half but Fortua held on for a very impressive victory and one that would set up a quarter final clash with another Bundesliga side - Borussia Mönchengladbach. Fortuna travelled about 35 miles north west to Gladbach's Bökelbergstadion to face their near neighbours who just six years earlier had been runners up in the European Cup final and were managed by the legendary Jupp Heynckes. Fortuna were expected to lose comfortably and when they went 2-0 down after 47 minutes it seemed they were facing the impossible. In an incredible turn of fortune, however, goals from Gerd Zimmermann and Bernd Grabosch saw the sides level after 73 minutes in what was an unbelievable comeback for the unfancied second tier side. Extra-time came and went without a winner and so it was back to Cologne for a replay. When Gladbach came to town roughly 14,000 spectators squeezed into Fortuna's modest Südstadion home, a venue three sides uncovered and complete with an athletics track. Fortuna more than held their own in the first half and when on the stroke of half-time a free kick from Florian Hinterberger was fired into the box from the right Schatzschneider was there to head home. From 2-0 down in the first match Fortuna were now winning in the replay. Schatzschneider would go on to become the 2.Bundesliga's all-time record goalscorer with 154 second tier goals to his name and that afternoon was to win the match for Fortuna by scoring a second. First, however, West German international Lothar Matthäus drew the visitors level from the penalty spot. Matthäus would go on to help West Germany win the World Cup seven years later but could not stop Gladbach suffering a shock defeat to Fortuna that day. A penalty was also how Fortuna retook the lead, with Schatzschneider firing past Ulrich Sude in the Gladbach goal after Hinterberger had been brought down. 2-1 Fortuna and they were in the semis. Defeating Gladbach was a famous scalp for Fortuna, but it would soon be overshadowed by an even more stunning result when BVB made the hour long journey south to Cologne for what would turn out to be a very memorable semi-final clash for Fortuna. With a potential final against city neighbours FC Köln instore for Fortuna if they pulled off another shock the home side were bound to be 'up for the cup' as they say, and so it would transpire. As for the other Cologne side, in their cup run, they had beaten Bayer Uerdingen by three goals to one in the first round and then defeated Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a club where Fortuna's Hinterberger later made his name, by the same scoreline in round two. FC Köln then defeated Stuttgarter Kickers 5-1 at home in round three before putting five without reply past FC Schalke 04 in the quarter finals. VfB Stuttgart the more illustrious city neighbours of FC Köln's third round opponents were to visit them in the semi finals. Before that, however, it was Fortuna who would take centre stage. Fortuna chairman Jean Löring had over years pumped a lot of money in the club and no doubt to help bring days like this. Löring resisted calls to move to the semi final to a bigger venue and once again the terraces at the Südstadion were packed as the semi final kicked off. Twelve Deutsche Mark's (about £3) had been the cost of the cheapest ticket for the match whilst some were being resold at far in excess of face value. With the game a complete sell out thousands were unable to gain entry and it seemed that every possible vantage point overlooking the diminutive stadium was occupied.
The 5,000 visiting supporters amongst the 14200 full house saw their side behind after just six minutes thanks to that man Schatzschneider. A hero in previous rounds, Schatzschneider slotted home into the bottom left hand corner from a crowded box to make it 1-0. Those inside the stadium could scarcely believe it, could another shock be on the cards? Well, 1-0 soon became 2-0 and maybe the unexpected really was going happen. Fortuna broke forward on 20 minutes, they were ruthless on the counter attack, and it was Dieter Lemke who fired a low drive into the net from just outside the six yard box. Thirteen minutes later and 2-0 became 3-0, this was Roy of the Rovers stuff from Fortuna. Jürgen Baier picked up the ball and took several touches forward before smashing it home from just outside the box, cue wild scenes. The fans were going berserk in the stands. 3-0 was the half-time score but things quietened down a little in the second half and it wasn't until 86 minutes that we saw goal number four. Erich Sauk fired the ball into the box and Schatzschneider was there to hit it home on the volley. Two goals against Braunschweig, two against Gladbach, and now two against BVB. Schatzschneider was in dreamland, Fortuna Köln were in dreamland, and more importantly, they were heading to the cup final. There was also time for a fifth when Hermann-Josef Werres slotted home from close range after a low through ball free-kick right at the death. And that was it, 5-0 against one of the Bundesliga's biggest names. Fans streamed onto the pitch at full-time, they couldn't believe it. Incredible stuff. Dortmund, meanwhile, responded to the humiliation by promptly firing coach Karlheinz Feldkamp. As for FC Köln, they secured their final place with a 3-2 victory over Stuttgart after extra time. An all Cologne final that no one could have dreamt of was suddenly a reality. After the semi finals in early April, both winners had to wait until June 11 for their big cup final clash. A disappointing end to Fortuna's league campaign saw them miss out on what would have been a remarkable promotion, but maybe their minds were elsewhere? In the weeks leading up to the final, there was talk of little else. Throughout the beer halls of Cologne, it seemed that enthusiastic punters discussed nothing but the upcoming match as they drank their local Kölsch beer. The excitement was at fever pitch. The DFB-pokalfinale is currently in its 35th year of being played at Berlin's Olympiastadion, but at the time of the 83 final, they were using various venues around the country to host the showpiece event. Naturally, it was decided that years final would be played in Cologne, specifically the Müngersdorfer Stadion where FC Köln played their home games. The ground was full to capacity on cup final day with over 60,000 in attendance, and although technically giving Fortuna's opponents home advantage it was the only suitable venue in the city. The final kicked off to a cacophony of klaxons and early on it was Fortuna who looked the better side. If their opponents thought this would be a walk in the park they were sadly mistaken. Fortuna's semi final drubbing of BVB certainly wasn't looking like a fluke based on this showing. Plus, despite FC Köln having home advantage on paper, in reality, huge numbers of the 60,000 sell out crowd seemed to be supporting the underdog, something coach Michels had predicted beforehand. It seemed in Cologne they had a soft spot for the little guy. Midway through the first half, Fortuna broke forward and it looked as if yet more dreams might come true. However, when Schatzschneider eventually drove a shot from a difficult angle West Germany's no.1 keeper Harald Schumacher had no trouble parrying the ball away and after the subsequent melee in the box, it was cleared to safety. It was only a few minutes later when a long drive from Fortuna's Hans-Jürgen Gede hit the woodwork, FC Köln were starting to get worried. Having said that, even though time and time again Fortuna broke forward, FC Köln generally defended well, forcing Fortuna to try long range efforts like Gede's. Arguably FC Köln's best chance of the first period came from a corner, but as the header from captain Gerhard Strack that followed seemed to drift down and wide Paul Steiner could not quite get a foot onto the end of it. There were other chances for FC Köln just before the interval but Stephan Engels fired his shot wide whilst shortly afterwards a Strack header from a corner was easily stopped by Bernd Helmschrot in the Fortuna goal. The game stood goalless at the break. There had been more promising football from FC Köln as the first half began to draw towards a close but it was Fortuna who overall had looked the better side. What would occur in the second half? The city of Cologne waited with bated breath. Schatzschneider scuffed a shot over the bar early into the second half whilst not long afterwards Baier hit the side netting. There were chances at both ends though with Herbert Neumann driving the ball wide for FC Köln. An overhead kick from Schatzschneider also flew wide, but the breakthrough came at the other end midway through the second period. A Neumann through ball saw Klaus Allofs fire the ball across goal and when Helmschrot tried to push the ball clear Pierre Littbarski was there to break Fortuna hearts. 68 minutes on the clock and Littbarski had slotted the ball home to give FC Köln the lead. Relief for FC Köln supporters but if anything the celebrations were a little subdued. Many had hoped to see the city's second team complete a remarkable cup run with a famous victory but instead they had fallen behind. Allofs fired high and wide from a free-kick shortly afterwards as FC Köln looked to kill off the game with a second. A late Hinterberger shot forced Schumacher to push the ball wide and sadly it wasn't to be for Fortuna. FC Köln were the cup winners, Fortuna Köln's heroics had finally ended in defeat at the final hurdle.
A few days after the match the two finalists were afforded a reception at the town hall. For the victors only light applause, for the gallant losers loud cheers. The little club from the Zollstock suburb of the city with its limited fanbase had suddenly captured the hearts of a whole metropolis. Those who would normally support Fortuna's bigger neighbours had seemingly fallen in love with their lesser cousins. Despite Fortuna's heroics, FC Köln were, however, still the number one team in the city, and when the following season got underway normal service was resumed. This new found love for Fortuna didn't last long as FC Köln continued to draw larger crowds than their neighbours, often six or seven times higher, sometimes more. Two years after that 1983 final FC Köln would find themselves runners up in UEFA Cup, and towards the end of the decade they would twice more finish runners up in the Bundesliga. In recent years FC Köln have spent the odd season in the 2. Bundesliga but Fortuna's position in the second tier is no more. Finally relegated in 2000, they've spent the years since moving between the third, fourth, and fifth tiers of German football, whilst last seasons relegation back to the fourth tier Relgionalliga West saw Cologne's third team FC Viktoria Köln head in the other direction to replace them in the 3. Liga. That famous cup run seems all but a distant memory now!
They have a record 27 Swiss league titles to their name, and last season was their 68th straight in the top tier of Swiss football, but when the new Super League campaign starts later this month Grasshopper Club Zürich will be missing. For the first time in almost seven decades, Grasshoppers will be plying their trade outside the top flight. Since winning their last league title in 2003, Grasshoppers have been beset by financial mismanagement, alleged fraud, constant changes in the boardroom, and the instability of thirteen different managers in sixteen years, not to mention the demolition of their historic Hardturm stadium which has left them homeless and groundsharing with city rivals FC Zurich. The above combined with a decline TV revenue and sponsorship income across Swiss football which has arguably seen Grasshoppers hit harder than most, has also helped bring about an eventual relegation that's seen the club crash out of the top division and face life in the second tier Challenge League for the first time since 1951. That aforementioned stadium issue came about when plans to build a 30,700-seat stadium on the site of their old Hardturm home had to be shelved. Originally planned to be built in the time for Euro 2008, the project was delayed and then later scrapped in 2009 when the main backers Credit Suisse pulled out citing the banking crisis. By this point, the Hardturm had already been knocked down and what was meant to be a temporary stay at the home of their arch rivals suddenly looked like it would become a more long term affair. In 2018 a referendum saw locals vote in favour of a new planned stadium for Grasshoppers, but at the minute they are still playing their matches at FC Zurich's Stadion Letzigrund. Before last seasons relegation, their league form at Letzigrund had been rather mixed, several second placed finishes have been combined with stints lower down the table, finishing as low as third bottom 2011-12 and second bottom just above the relegation spot the season before last. There was, however, a Swiss Cup triumph in 2013 when they beat FC Basel on penalties in the final. For all the recent troubles, it wasn't till last season that Grasshoppers actually hit rock bottom. Summing up their plight, local daily newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung recently described the club as being 'terminally ill', and after events earlier this year that phrase does not seem too far off being accurate. 2018-19 saw Grasshoppers in a 36 game season end up with just five victories to their name and finishing some twelve points behind second bottom Neuchâtel Xamax. But that was only half the story... On 16 March Grasshoppers' match away at Sion was abandoned after 56 minutes when visiting fans started throwing fireworks onto the pitch. The home side who were 2-0 up at the time were awarded a 3-0 victory. Things got even worse when the club saw a second match of theirs abandoned less than two months later. The game away at FC Luzern on 12 May saw visiting Grasshopper supporters threaten to invade the pitch and reportedly demand the team's players hand over their shirts stating they were not fit to wear them, or as the Daily Mail claimed, told them: 'Hand over your shirts and socks and crawl back to the dressing room like dogs'. With attempts to calm supporters down unsuccessful, the players unbelievably did eventually hand their shirts over. The bottom of the league club were 4-0 down when the match was stopped. The result if allowed to stand would relegate Grasshoppers but whilst a disciplinary panel took its time in awarding Luzern the 4-0 win, relegation was in the meantime officially confirmed anyway when four days later Grasshoppers lost 6-1 to champions Young Boys. A sorry end for one of Switzerland's grandest names. For a club that had not won a league game since last November, it had for quite a while felt like a case when not if, but that did not make the inevitable any easier when it finally happened as the reaction from supporters showed. But now the dust has settled and the club is moving on, preparing for life outside a top flight they had graced for so long. In less than a weeks time Grasshoppers kick off a new league campaign when they entertain FC Baden in the opening round of second tier Challenge League fixtures and will be hoping for a return to the top flight with help of several familiar names. Coach Uli Forte returned to the club last season, whilst former club captain Veroljub Salatic re signed for the club last month, shortly followed by fellow ex Grasshoppers player Nassim Ben Khalifa. Forte who says he wants an 'immediate resurgence' had previously been in charge when the club won the cup in 2013 and he returned as to replace Tomislav Stipic who was fired after just six games in charge having taken over from Thorsten Fink who left in March. 33-year-old midfielder Salatic meanwhile had played under Forte when the club won the Swiss Cup six years ago, whilst 27-year-old attacker Khalifa was also part of that cup winning side. "Grasshopper Zurich is an institution and belongs in the Swiss Super League," said Forte after relegation was confirmed, and a name as big as Grasshoppers were always going to favourites for the second tier title, something that would mean an immediate return to the Super League. But whether or not the crisis hit club returns at the first attempt remains to be seen, after all this is alien territory for a club who had been in the top tier as long as Grasshoppers had.
It was a tale that even Hans Christian Andersen himself could not have dreamt up. Michael Schjønberg hit the ball across the box where Jesper Hjorth left it for Morten Bisgaard to slot home, leaving Real Madrid absolutely stunned. In second half injury time Danish minnows Odense Boldklub (OB) had scored a goal that was to send the Spaniards crashing out of the UEFA Cup. One of Europe's most famous clubs had fallen foul to one of the great upsets of European club football history. They called it 'Miraklet i Madrid', the Miracle in Madrid, 6 December 1994, a team who had never been past the first round of a European competition before from a country whose clubs had had little in the way of European success over the years came back from a home first leg deficit to knock out the most successful club in European football history. OB at that time were one of the more successful teams in Danish football, league champions in 1977, they won two more league titles in the 1980s and had finished as high as second only two seasons previously. Domestic club football in Denmark, however, had been completely amateur until 1978 and only in recent years had it became fully professional. Real Madrid, on the other hand, were six times European Cup winners and had twice won the UEFA Cup itself, whilst playing in what was one of the strongest domestic competitions in Europe they had been league champions five times in the previous ten seasons and would go on to win the league crown again that campaign. Real Madrid's squad included big names stars such as centre back Fernando Hierro, Luis Enrique who would later join arch rivals FC Barcelona, Dane Michael Laudrup, signed from arch rivals FC Barcelona, a young Raúl who would go on to score 71 Champions League goals over the course of his career, and Chilean star Iván Zamorano. Almost all of OB's players, however, were completely unknown outside of Denmark. It truly was a mismatch of enormous proportions, and if you needed more proof of the gulf between the two teams well they had actually met in the first round of the same competition in 1990 and Real Madrid prevailed 10-1 on aggregate! OB would meet Real Madrid in the third round of the 1994-95 UEFA Cup but their campaign started in the preliminary round where they eased past Estonian side Flora Tallinn 6-0 on aggregate, whilst a 6-1 aggregate victory over Northern Ireland's Belfast based Linfield in the first round followed. Real Madrid entered in round one and Sporting Clube de Portugal were defeated thanks to the away goals rule after a 2-2 aggregate scoreline. In the second round, Real Madrid dispatched of Dynamo Moscow 6-2 over the two legs to set up a tie with either German side 1. FC Kaiserslautern or of course Odense BK in round three. Nevermind Real Madrid, beating Kaiserslautern would in itself be a tall order for OB. Kaiserslautern had finished second in the German Bundesliga the previous season, just one point behind champions FC Bayern München, and their squad included players such as Stefan Kuntz who would go on to play a key role in the Germany side that was to win the European Championships two years later, and an ageing Andreas Brehme who had been part of Germany's 1990 World Cup winning side.
In the first leg away in Germany OB more than held their own and with the match poised at 0-0 heading into the final 20 minutes took a shock lead. A thunderbolt long range strike from Carsten Hemmingsen, brother of club captain Michael, found the net from comfortably more than 30 yards out. Cue crazy celebrations from the men in blue and white. OB's lead only lasted two minutes, however, as a Ciriaco Sforza corner flew past everyone and into the net. A 1-1 final score meant it could be a fascinating second leg in Denmark's third largest city. OB's away goal gave them the advantage going into the second leg, and despite all the excitement promised the game actually finished goalless. Nonetheless, it was a massive result for OB, they had knocked out one of the bigger names in the competition and set up a dream last sixteen tie with the mighty Real Madrid. The first leg of that last sixteen tie took place in front of a bumper crowd at OB's Odense Stadion and was a five goal thriller. A swerving effort from outside the box saw Michael Schjønberg give OB the lead on the stroke of half time and the locals couldn't believe it, little OB were 1-0 up against one of the biggest clubs world football. 22 minutes into the second half, however, Real Madrid found themselves level when a ball across the box saw Iván Zamorano slot home. José Amavisca fired the visitors in front two minutes later but OB were level eleven minutes from time when a thunderbolt strike from Hjorth found the back of the net. 2-2, unbelievable. That, however, was not the end of it though. Real Madrid's Danish international Laudrup along with his brother Brian was one of the country's star players, and far too good for the substandard Danish Superliga had made a name for himself abroad, most recently in Madrid. That night he was to hand the visitors victory. His low drive from just outside the box in the 90th minute settled the match and left OB with a mammoth task ahead in the second leg. OB were only one goal down after the first leg but with Real Madrid having three away goals to their name OB would need to win the second leg by two clear goals if they wanted to progress to the quarter finals, a seemingly impossible task. OB were inspired that night, and none more so than local lad goalkeeper Lars Høgh. Høgh's heroic performance prevented what would have a Real Madrid rampage as time and time again he made important saves to stop a truly dominant home side further their advantage from the first leg. Laudrup had a chance saved at close range, Alfonso saw a drive blocked, then Emilio Butragueño forced Høgh to make a brilliant save, Laudrup had another effort saved in the second-half, and Høgh was also on hand to save from a free-kick. For Høgh it really was the game of his life. All those saves were all fine and well but OB actually needed goals if they wanted to progress, they'd hit the crossbar in the first half but finally got the breakthrough on 71 minutes. Hjorth played the ball through to Ulrik Pedersen who raced into the box and slotted home. A real sense of nervousness suddenly swept through the Bernabéu, the home side were still ahead in the tie but only just. Whilst Real Madrid continued to create chances they failed to find an equaliser, and it was in injury time that the inconceivable happened. Bisgaard had first entered the pitch thanks to a substitution less than ten minutes earlier and when he put the visitors 2-0 up right at the death it was one of those classic European away goal scenes where you could almost hear a pin drop. Of the 58 goals Morten Bisgaard scored across a career that included 101 appearances for Derby County, none was more dramatic than the stoppage time goal in Madrid. The OB players went wild pilling on top of each other, others were going crazy in the away team dugout, and those commentating on the match for Denmark's TV2 were getting more than a little excited, but almost all the rest of the stadium was in complete silence, they could not believe what they had just seen.
A small club from Denmark whom many Real Madrid supporters might not have even heard of before the pair were drawn together had dumped them out of the UEFA Cup in the most dramatic of fashion. Yes, the white half of Madrid would be crowned Spanish league champions at the end of the season, but it would always be the campaign in which they lost to little Odense Boldklub. OB would ultimately suffer a 1-0 aggregate loss to Italian side Parma in the next round, which still stands as their most successful European campaign to date.
Having made his senior debut for his hometown side in 1977, one club man Lars Høgh would in total make 817 appearances for OB in a career that spanned over twenty years, and now runs coaching courses in Denmark. Ulrik Pedersen retired from football in 2011 having played for several clubs in Denmark and now works as an environmental consultant. Randers born midfielder Bisgaard returned to OB in 2007 before retiring two years later, he'd originally left the club in 1998 and had spells with Udinese, FC København, and of course Derby. He now works as a TV commentator back home in Denmark. Almost 25 years on and OB's achievement seems just as incredible as ever, whilst in the current Champions League era where the continent's biggest clubs seemingly get richer and richer year by and year, and even more dominant season after season, it is a shock of which we may struggle to ever see the like of again. That night in Madrid, it really was the stuff of miracles. A version of this was publish on Pundit Freed and can be viewed here
