DUTCH COURAGE
Wark: Sinking slick Holland gave Scots stars belief we could shine in Spain at World Cup
SCOTLAND’S misplaced confidence ahead of the 1978 World Cup has become the stuff of uncomfortable legend.
But for John Wark the belief that coursed through Jock Stein’s Lion Rampants four years later was every bit as fierce – but without the farce.
Heading to the finals in Spain having topped a qualifying group that included Northern Ireland, Sweden, Portugal and Israel had put down a marker.
Beating Holland – World Cup runners-up in 1978 – in a warm-up friendly at Hampden three months before the greatest show on earth started just confirmed the Scots’ quality.
Wark was in his prime as a key member of the Ipswich squad who were holders of the UEFA Cup when he ran out at a packed Hampden on a cold Tuesday evening on March 23, 1982. The Dutch side had four members of the AZ Alkmaar side Wark’s Ipswich had beaten 10 months earlier to win the trophy in their line-up.
But even the sight of that quartet along with his Ipswich team-mate Arnold Muhren and Ajax legends Ruud Krol, Wim Kieft and Frank Rijkaard didn’t worry him – not with the calibre of player lining up in navy blue.
Scotland blasted out the traps and the famous Hampden roar echoed round Mount Florida when Frank Gray slammed a 13th-minute penalty past Hans van Breukelen.
It got even better eight minutes later when Kenny Dalglish broke through the Dutch defence to dink a second goal over van Breukelen.
Kieft pulled one back for Kees Rijvers’ Dutch side on the half hour mark.
But Scotland passed up a host of chances after the interval to make the final 2-1 scoreline even more convincing.
Wark said: “I had just missed out in 1978 with a hamstring injury. So getting into Jock’s squad for the 82 World Cup was an absolute must.
“Thankfully I managed to do that and the game against the Dutch was a key part of that.
“We knew the importance of playing well and keeping your place. I loved playing at Hampden for my country – there was nothing better.
“Incredibly there were 72,000 in the stadium for a friendly that night and that shows the strength of feeling among the supporters
Playing at Hampden for my country – there was nothing better
JOHN WARK
ahead of the World Cup. The Dutch had some team. They had Ruud Krol who got 81 caps and what a player he was.
“They had a young Frank Rijkaard, Wim Kieft and four players who were in the squad from AZ Alkmaar – Ronald Spelbos, Johnny Metgod, Hugo Hovenkamp and Jan Peters – who I had just played against in the 1981 UEFA Cup Final. So I knew how good they were.
“And there was Arnold Muhren who was a team-mate of mine at Ipswich at the time. He was a quiet guy but had a left foot like a wand.
“I was telling our boys, ‘Give him space and he will destroy us so just bloody kick him’.
“Beating Holland that night gave us a massive boost going into the World Cup. I remember we played really well and confidence was at a peak.
“Looking at our squad we knew we had as good a chance as we had ever had going to Spain. We were confident we could take on anyone with Jock Stein as manager and players like McGrain, Miller, McLeish, Gray, Hansen, Strachan, Souness, Jordan, Dalglish, Robertson and Archibald.
“It was an unbelievably talented group of players. But we got a really difficult group. You could say Russia was top six in the world and Brazil were the best.”
Of course it was to end in glorious failure again as Stein’s side missed out on the second round on goal difference after thumping New Zealand 5-2, losing 4-1 to Brazil and drawing the must-win final clash with Russia 2-2.
Wark added: “We should have beaten Russia but ended up with a draw and that will forever nag at me.
“Scoring twice in the first game against New Zealand is among the highlights of my career. I’m actually gutted I fluffed a header or it could have been a hat-trick for my country at the World Cup.
“I do remember something funny after the Brazil game. Kenny Dalglish and Alan Hansen made a beeline for Zico who was basically the new Pele. But he fobbed them off. It was the nearest Hansen got to Zico that day!
“But then Zico walked over to me and asked for my shirt. I said, ‘You can have what you want mate!’ The reason he wanted mine was because I was No.10 and he was collecting all the 10s.
“When I saw Hansen’s face in the dressing room it was a picture! I later gave that Zico shirt to charity and they made a lot of money off it.”