DAY THREE
Tuesday 15th June 1982
GROUP ONE, Estadio Riazor, La Coruna. (17:15)
CAMEROON (0) 0
PERU (0) 0
Cameroon: N’Kono; Kaham, Onana, M, Bom, Aoudou, N’Djeya; Kunde, M’Bida, Abega; Milla (Tokoto), N’Guea (Bahoken)
Peru: Quiroga; Duarte, Diaz, Olaechea, Salguero; Leguia (Barbadillo), Velasquez, Cueto, Uribe, Cubillas (La Rosa); Oblitas
After the draw between Italy and Poland, yesterday, these two teams were hopeful of gaining an advantage. Peru, who’d impressed four years earlier, still included Scotland’s nemesis, Teofilo Cubillas and Cesar Cueto and were managed by a Brazilian, the wonderfully named Tim. Cameroon were making their first appearance at a World Cup finals. The stars in each team were Cubillas and Roger Milla. They both had chances to open the scoring, yet found the respective keepers in good form, or the woodwork got in the way. Towards the end of the first half, Milla had the ball in the net after a good one-two with M’Bida on the edge of the area, but the goal was ruled out for offside.
Both teams created chances, but lacked real conviction to make it count. Cameroon equipped themselves very well, but as the game was nearing an end the crowd, in pre-Mexican wave days, sent on a dog to try and liven things up. It managed to show more movement than Paolo Rossi had done the day before. The game ended level and we were still yet to see a goal in Group One.
GROUP THREE, Estadio Nuevo, Elche. (21:00)
HUNGARY (3) 10 (Nyilasi 3, 83, Poloskei 10, Fazekas 23, 54, Toth 50, Kiss 69, 72, 76, Szentes 71)
EL SALVADOR (0) 1 (Ramirez 64)
Hungary: Meszaros; Martos, Toth, Garaba, Balint; Sallai, Muller (Szentes), Nyilasi; Fazekas, Torocsik (Kiss), Poloskei
El Salvador: Mora; Castillo, Recinos, Rodriguez, Jovel; Ventura (Fagoaga), Rugamas (Ramirez), Huezo; Hernandez, Gonzalez, Rivas
This was the second game in this group, after Belgium’s surprise win over Argentina in the opening match.
Hungary had competed in the 1978 tournament without winning a game, whereas El Salvador hadn’t been in the finals since 1970. Hungary had qualified in England’s group and their playmaker was Tibor Nyilasi, with an exciting striker in Andras Torocsik. Three minutes into the game, Hungary had a corner which Fazekas took and Nyilasi headed in, unmarked. 1-0 In the 10th minute, Fazekas was again involved as he played Poloskei in and as he got clear of the defence the keeper covered his near post, allowing the Hungarian to fire a shot into the far corner for the second goal. 2-0.
After twenty-three minutes, Fazekas picked up the ball in midfield and with no challenge forthcoming, he surged towards the Salvador goal. He then fired a shot into the top corner, from about twenty-five yards. 3-0. That’s how things stood to half-time, with no warning of what was to come.
It took just five minutes after the break for Hungary to score again. Joszef Toth ran down the left and as he cut into the area his low cross was blocked. But the ball came back to him and with the keeper committed to the cross, Toth had the simple task of rolling the ball into the empty net. 4-0.
Four minutes later, Fazekas took a corner on the left which El Salvador defended. But Nyilasi picked up the clearance and played Fazekas back in, and he fired in his second goal of the game. 5-0.
The two players who’d impressed most for the Central Americans were the captain, Huezo and Gonzalez. These two combined to give Luis Ramirez Zapata the opportunity to get a goal back, and they were all very pleased with that. 5-1.
Just after Hungary’s fifth goal, Laszlo Kiss came on for Torocsik With twenty minutes to go he scored from another Fazekas corner. 6-1. Three minutes later, Martos crossed from the right and it looked to be going out on the left wing. Poloskei just kept it in and as he got to the byeline, his ball across the goal found Szentes, another substitute, completely free and he tapped in for number seven. 7-1. A minute later the Hungarians came forward again and Poloskei laid the ball off to Kiss on the left-hand edge of the area, and he audaciously chipped the keeper for his second goal of the game. 8-1. Four minutes after that, Toth attacked down the left and his cross was palmed out by the keeper. It fell to Kiss who fired past two defenders for his hat-trick. Kiss had only been on the pitch twenty minutes, and his hat-trick had taken just seven minutes. 9-1.
Then into the final ten minutes and Toth’s cross from the left was headed in by Nyilasi, to complete a kind of synergy between his first goal and the last. 10-1.
Hungary had broken the record for most goals in a World Cup finals match. It was a stunning start for them, and with Argentina losing to Belgium, gave real them hope of getting through the first group stage.
GROUP SIX, Estadio La Rosaleda. (21:00)
SCOTLAND (3) 5 (Dalglish 18, Wark 29, 32, Robertson 73, Archibald 80)
NEW ZEALAND (0) 2 (Sumner 54, Wooddin 64)
Scotland: Rough; McGrain, Hansen, Evans, Gray; Strachan (Narey), Wark, Souness; Brazil (Archibald), Dalglish, Robertson
New Zealand: van Hattum; Almond (Herbert), Hill, Sumner, Elrick; Malcolmson (Cole), MacKay, Cresswell, Boath; Rufer, Wooddin
Scotland opened their account in their third successive finals appearance, and were up against New Zealand, making their debut. A potential banana-skin reminiscent of Peru, four years earlier, the Scots were in a determined mood. A great run from Gordon Strachan saw him find Kenny Dalglish in the area and the Liverpool striker opened the scoring in the opening twenty minutes. Strachan was again involved when Scotland doubled their lead. His ball into the area found Brazil whose shot was parried by the keeper and Wark was on hand to turn it in. Three minutes later Strachan crossed from the right and found the head of John Wark and Scotland were 3-0 up. It had been a near perfect first half for one of the best sides Scotland had ever assembled. Nothing could go wrong now, surely?
In the second half, New Zealand seemed to grow in confidence and Wynton Rufer produced a good run down the right and his ball into the area looked to be easily cut-out by Danny McGrain. His weak touch allowed Steve Sumner the opportunity to bundle the ball past Alan Rough. It was New Zealand’s first ever goal in a World Cup finals and then ten minutes later they had their second. A long ball from the back put Wooddin away and he finished well to reduce the deficit to just a goal. Scotland appeared increasingly nervous as they were desperate to avoid a humiliation. They had a free-kick in a central position just outside the area. They looked like they’d messed things up, then John Robertson floated the ball over the wall to give Scotland a 4-2 lead. Gordon Strachan then took a corner on the right and Steve Archibald back-headed it in and the Scots could now relax, as they were off and running.
After the goalless draw in the first match, the evening’s entertainment had seen eighteen goals.
A big day tomorrow as hosts Spain take their bow, against first-timers Honduras. England take on France without the injured Kevin Keegan and Trevor Brooking. West Germany look to have an easy game against another newcomer, Algeria. The Germans have been predicting a big score
