Scotland v Austria

SCOTLAND v AUSTRIA / EUROPEAN QUALIFIERS / FIFA 2022 WORLD CUP
Horst Nemec was sent packing after
Law scored the fourth and then Erich
Hof was dismissed on 78 minutes for a
foul on Willie Henderson.
Having had Fritz Rafreider injured just
after half-time (no substitutes were
allowed after half-time), Austria were
down to eight men and, following
a clash between Law and Austrian
goalscorer Anton Linhart, Finney
walked off.
Speaking in a Herald interview in 2013,
Davie Gibson, the former Hibs and
Leicester player who made his debut
in the game, said: “I still, 50 years on,
cannot work out why the Austrians lost
the plot as they did.
“Apart from Bill Brown and Ian Ure, we
didn’t have a player taller than five foot
eight or nine. They were bigger than us
but, while they were happy to dish it out,
they weren’t so happy when the likes of
Denis Law kicked them back. And with
us winning easily and stroking the ball
about they lost it completely.
“In fact, I feared it might have been
abandoned earlier. Horst Nemec,
their centre forward, spat at referee
Jim Finney and was sent off. I felt Jim,
England’s top referee at the time,
might have abandoned the game there
and then.”
The next time the two sides faced each
other in a competitive environment was
in the 1970 World Cup qualifiers where
Scotland won 2-1 at home and lost 2-0
away, ultimately failing to get to the
Mexico finals.
The countries were also in the
same group for the 1980 European
Championship qualifiers. Scotland went
down 3-2 in the away fixture then
drew 1-1 at Hampden but again, after
finishing fourth in a five-team group,
failed to qualify for the Euros in Italy.
There was more joy in the 1998
World Cup qualification campaign
where the Scots drew 0-0 in Vienna
before winning 2-0 at Celtic Park.
Kevin
Gallacher
wheels
away after
scoring for
Scotland in
their 1997
World Cup
qualifier
Kevin Gallacher grabbed a double in
a dramatic night in the east end of
Glasgow on 2 April, 1997. His first came
after good work by Darren Jackson
allowed him the chance to thrash the
ball high into the net from six yards, and
his second was a wonderful volley from
inside the box after the break.
The victory stretched Scotland’s lead
over Austria in Group Four to seven
points but Scotland manager Craig
Brown warned: “The section is by no
means over. There’s a lot of work to do
before we can say we’re going to France.
Any complacency could cost us.
“But we played the European style
tonight which we’ve been trying to
develop. We’re getting better at keeping
the ball. We played Austria at their own
style and came out on top.”
Brown’s caution was warranted. In a
six-team group, the Scots finished two
points behind group winners Austria.
However, qualification criteria meant
both countries went to France.
No-one in the Tartan Army needs
reminding that 1998 was the last time
Scotland reached the World Cup finals
and, on the back of qualifying Euro 2020,
boss Steve Clarke will be looking to get
this campaign off to a flier.
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HAMPDEN PARK / THURSDAY, 25 MARCH 2021