IT IS 25 years to the day when the cruel spin on a glancing Wim Kieft header knocked Ireland out of Euro ’88.
Jack Charlton’s men bowed out of the tournament on 18 June, 1988, following a brave 1-0 loss to Holland in Gelsenkirchen. An opening victory over England and a draw against the USSR was not enough to progress as the Irish were eliminated by the eventual winners.
Kiefts goal, scored after 82 minutes, was angled away from Packie Bonner in the Irish goal and was drifting wide until it took a sharp bounce and spun inside the left-hand post. TheScore.ie caught up with former Holland striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who was at the game and decked out in orange amid a sea of green jerseys.
He recalled, “That Ireland game was massive. We won that and I was 12-years-old at the time. Euro ‘88 is still very clear in my mind and the game against Ireland. Wim Kieft scored in the last minutes with this weird header that went in. It was a bit lucky.
I went to that game actually. I was there in the stadium, in between all the Irish fans and celebrating the goal that we scored. Unforgettable memories.”
Here is a rather bizarre video of the goal that eliminated the Irish (goal arrives on 1:36):
YouTube credit: SiR OMARTV
What are your memories of the game?
