Argentina goal that changed my life
Stewart shirty with back-room staff
Published:
STEWART McKimmie is still annoyed he doesn’t have a lasting souvenir of the day he shot down Argentina.
The Evening Express columnist and former Aberdeen captain netted one of the most famous goals in Scottish football history when the then world champions were beaten 1-0 in a friendly at Hampden 18 years ago.
But becoming a national hero robbed Stewart of the chance to get Argentina striker Claudio Cannigia’s shirt as a lasting memento of his glory night.
Stewart said: “Cannigia agreed during the game to swap shirts with me in the dressing room.
“But I had to do so many radio and television interviews and pose for so many pictures, everyone was showered and changed by the time I got back in.
“I then discovered a few of the Argentina shirts had been snapped up by the SFA’s backroom staff.
“It used to annoy the players that almost everyone behind the scenes – physios, kit men and other people who seemed to do very little but always appeared on match days – were given a Scotland shirt each to swap after games.
“They often beat us to the punch because they would go through to the opposing dressing room while we were still in the showers.
“It also happened to me after we played CIS at the Euro ‘92 finals in Sweden.
“But it was particularly upsetting not to get some sort of souvenir from the Argentina game because scoring that goal meant a lot to me.”
Stewart’s joy at helping Scotland become the first country to beat the Argentinians since they won the World Cup in 1986 is intensified because he wasn’t in the original squad for the game.
“I was still struggling to get established with Scotland and had been listed to play in a B international against Yugoslavia.
“I was only added to the full squad at the last minute because Richard Gough was injured.
“I expected to be on the bench, so was delighted when manager Andy Roxburgh decided to put me in from the start.”
But Stewart confessed the Scots actually cheated in the lead up to the only goal he netted in 40 international appearances.
“The ball actually went out of play for a throw-in to Argentina,” he said.
“But one of our lads – I think it was Alex McLeish – quickly grabbed the ball and threw it down the line.
“We were surprised to see the ref wave play on and when the ball eventually reached me I just hammered it as hard as I could in the direction of the goal.
“It was a great feeling watching it fly past their keeper into the net. It was only a friendly but it was still a great achievement to beat a side of their quality.
“The fact so many people still come up to me and congratulate me for scoring that goal shows how much it meant to the Scotland fans.
“I won a host of trophies with Aberdeen, but I will probably go to my grave remembered for that goal more than anything else.”
Stewart’s reward for giving the Tartan Army a night they would never forget was a place in the Scotland squad that went to the World Cup finals in Italy that summer.
“That goal was the making of me at international level,” he said.
“Despite all the success I had enjoyed with Aberdeen I was never a regular with the national side.
“The cap I gained against Argentina was only my third.
“But I went on to play in the 1990 World Cup finals and 1992 and 1996 European Championship finals, so that goal was a significant event in my career.”
Stewart would love to see the present squad beat Argentina in November.
“I would even be delighted if big Kirk Broadfoot scored the winning goal,” he said.
“The fact a player as limited as Kirk is getting a game shows how tough it will be for Scotland.
“George Burley simply doesn’t have the same quality in depth as Andy Roxburgh had available to him, so it could be a real struggle.
“That doesn’t mean someone like Kirk can’t make himself a hero.
“I’ve taken a lot of stick for criticising Kirk in the past, but I do admire the grit and determination he has shown to get on in his career.
“I cheered as loud as any other Scotland fan when he scored against Iceland last month.
“I won’t be betting my mortgage on Kirk being the match winner against Argentina though!”
Readers' Comments
Is he upset because he didn't have Cannigia's shirt to sell like he did with his winners medals?
Mark Roberts
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