England v Scotland: The matches which define a rivalry
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On Friday, England and Scotland will meet at Wembley for round number 113 in the world’s oldest footballing rivalry.
It’s a tale which spans almost 150 years of history, and no fixture conjures so much passion and pride amongst both sets of fans.
So many contests have contributed to this clash’s unrivalled status, but we’ve picked out five that have become legend either south or north of the border.
Let’s start at the beginning…
1872 – Scotland 0-0 England
Unofficially, England and Scotland first met in 1870 at the Oval in London, playing five matches in total, but this fixture in 1872 in Glasgow is regarded as the first official international contest.
4,000 fans were in attendance at Hamilton Crescent in the Partick region of the city, to witness the birth of a football rivalry, and indeed, the birth of international football.
1928 – England 1-5 Scotland
Scotland’s finest hour in those early days arguably occurred at Wembley 88 years ago.
The stadium had only been open for five years, but the Tartan Army were untouchable in a 5-1 victory. Today that side are known in local folklore as the Wembley Wizards.
1961 – England 9-3 Scotland
England exacted revenge for that defeat 33 years later in emphatic fashion.
The late, great Sir Bobby Robson got things up and running after just nine minutes, before a Jimmy Greaves brace made it 3-0 before the half hour.
Scotland briefly made it 3-2 early in the second period, but the Three Lions ran riot to fire home six more – including a hat-trick for Greaves – to record their biggest ever success against the Auld Enemy.
1967 – England 2-3 Scotland
Arguably Scotland’s most famous win against England came at Wembley in 1967, in qualifying for the 1968 European Championships.
Sir Alf Ramsey’s men had won the World Cup 18 months previously, but in front of almost 100,000 people, the Scots prevailed 3-2, to crown themselves as unofficial world champions.
Ramsey and England had the last laugh however, as it was they who made it to the 1968 Euros at Scotland’s expense.
1996 – Scotland 0-2 England
Fate had decried that the old rivals would clash at Euro 96, fittingly, at the home of football.
Alan Shearer had put the hosts ahead shortly after the interval, and we all know what happened next.
David Seaman parried Gary McAllister’s penalty high into the sky, and exactly 60 seconds later, Paul Gascoigne tucked away one of the most iconic goals in world football.
Spine tingling.
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Ahead of this first competitive meeting since 1999, Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions currently sit top of Group F after collecting seven points from their opening three games. Scotland are in fourth place following a win, a draw and a defeat.
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