Eurosport - Wed, 11 Nov 15:29:00 2009
We look back at a time when Peter Taylor was manager of England and Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank were duking it out.
1991: Lineker sends England to Sweden November 13
A match that is probably remembered by Irish fans as much as it is by English supporters, Gary Lineker sent England into the last eight of the European Championship by getting a 77th minute equaliser in Poland.
In a tough group Ireland, England and Poland drew with each other, with the sole exception being England's opening 2-0 victory over Poland. Turkey proved to be the group's whipping boys, as they lost all their matches.
Until Lineker's late strike, it was Ireland who were in line to qualify on goal difference, as it was still back in the day when only two points were awarded for a win.
With Ireland comfortably ahead in Turkey, Irish television switched over to the England match where Irish fans watched in dismay as Lineker sent his side to Sweden.
1982: Kim Duk-koo dies in the ring - November 13
Boxing would change forever on this week back in 1982 when Ray Mancini stopped Korean challenger Kim Duk-Koo in a lightweight championship fight.
Kim had struggled to lose weight in the days prior to the bout so that he could weigh in under the 135 pound limit, and his dedication would ultimately prove fatal.
He collapsed into a coma minutes after the fight and five days later died from his injuries. The tragedy did not end there however, with both Kim's mother and the bout's referee Richard Greene committing suicide within a year of the fight.
The bout led to an in-depth re-examination of safety in boxing, which would eventually see title fights reduced from 15 rounds to 12, while pre-fight medical examinations were made much more stringent.
1994: Grobbelaar charged with match fixing - November 14
On this week back in 1994, former Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar was charged by the FA after a sting by The Sun recorded him talking about match fixing.
The then Southampton keeper showed good spirits when the allegations broke, pretending to take bribes from Arsenal fans in his first game back playing.
The Zimbabwean pleaded not guilty to the charges saying that he was gathering evidence to later give to the police.
Charged with conspiracy to corrupt by the police, Grobbelaar was finally cleared in 1997 when two successive juries failed to reach a verdict on his case.
He then won £85,000 in libel damages, but The Sun had the sum reduced to £1 on appeal and Grobbelaar was told to pay the tabloid's legal fees, which were an estimated £500,000. When Grobbelaar couldn't pay he was declared bankrupt.
2000: Peter Taylor takes charge of England - November 15
Peter Taylor recently left Wycombe but there was a stage when his stock was so high that he was chosen as caretaker for the England team for a friendly against Italy.
The most significant move that Taylor made was to hand the captain's armband to David Beckham for the first time. Taylor was given the job for the 1-0 defeat because he had done such a good job with the England U21s.
He proceeded to pick six players still eligible for the English youngsters for the game in Turin with Gareth Barry, Jamie Carragher, Kieron Dyer, Rio Ferdinand, Emile Heskey and Seth Johnson all being selected. Seth Johnson? Five out of six isn't bad.
Sven Goran Eriksson took over the following January.
1869: Englishman wins first one-day classic - November 17
The one-day classic was born on this day way back in 1869 when the first cycle race covering a distance between two cities was held between Paris and Rouen.
The 83-mile trek was won by Paris-based Englishman James Moore in 10 hours, 40 minutes.
A total of 120 riders, including two women, participated but just 32 finished within 24 hours.
Moore won by 15 minutes, while the first woman, referred to as Miss America, finished 26th, 12:10.00 behind Moore.
1990: Eubank beats Benn in epic contest - November 18
Much-hyped fights often end in disappointment, but the first Chris Eubank v Nigel Benn clash in Birmingham delivered everything a boxing fan could hope for - and more.
The intense rivalry between the pair saw the WBO middleweight bout talked up for months, and the pre-fight press conferences just fuelled the hatred between the two men.
The fight itself was an epic, bloody contest; Eubank was floored early, but he fought back and stopped Benn just before the end of the ninth round.
Referee Richard Steele would later say: "It was a brutal fight on both sides. One of the most brutal I have ever handled."
The fans loved it and 42,000 attended the re-match at Old Trafford three years later when the pair produced another exhilarating battle, with the outcome this time being a draw.
Please login to post a comment
Not already a Yahoo! user ? Sign up to get a free Yahoo! Account