This isn’t the Eurovision Song Contest! Horne eyes chance to ease 1994 hurt
BARRY HORNE has a first-class chemistry degree, but there is no known medicine to ease his biggest disappointment in football.
In a parallel universe, Horne would have captained Wales at the 1994 World Cup finals, and 29 years ago he was so close to living the dream.
With their death-or-glory qualifier against Romania in Cardiff locked at 1-1, and Wales on top after Dean Saunders’ equaliser, they were awarded a penalty when the late Gary Speed was tripped in the box by Dan Petrescu.
The BBC, who had been showing live coverage of England’s 7-1 win over San Marino – which came too late to save the Three Lions’ chances of going to the USA and Graham Taylor’s job as manager – even switched to the drama. But Paul Bodin crashed his spot-kick against the bar and Romania, who had been rocking, recovered their composure to win 2-1.
For sobering context, John Hill, a 67-year-old retired postman from Merthyr Tydfil, was later killed when a distress flare was launched inside the ground and hit him in the chest.
Horne, now 60, hopes Rob Page’s side can end 64 years of hurt and near misses in tomorrow’s World Cup play-off against Ukraine and land their first ticket to the finals since 1958. But the disappointment of that game in November 1993 has never left him.
He said: “Even now, hardly a day goes by when I don’t think about it, and how my life might have turned out if the result had been different.
“I’ve never really got over it. I could have been the first captain since 1958 to lead Wales to a World Cup and it never sank in that we got so close without getting over the line.
“I still replay the game in my mind – I can remember
us going behind, unusually and unbelievably to a shot Neville Southall should have saved – a collectors’ item because he was the best keeper in the world – and the way we fought back.
“Rightly or wrongly, Romania had a reputation for being temperamental – brilliant or flaky – and when Dean Saunders equalised they were rocking. I said to the lads, ‘They are gone, we’ve got this’. If that penalty goes in, they are not coming back and we’re on our way to the World Cup.
“We had a team deserving of the big stage – Big Nev, Rush, Hughes, Giggs, Speed... it’s a crying shame none of them ever went to a major tournament. “Maybe Sunday is our chance to put that right.”
Horne, whose 18-year playing career spanned 575 club games and 59 caps for Wales, says they must put sentiment to one side and subject Ukraine, who beat Scotland in Wednesday’s semi-final, to the dragon’s fire at full blast.
Russia’s invasion of its neighbour has won Ukraine worldwide sympathy, but Horne said: “This is not the Eurovision Song Contest. World Cup places are not decided by a popular vote. If I was playing, my mindset would be simple – I’d want to beat them. Everyone is treading on eggshells, but this is sport.
“I would shake hands, wish them all the best then play the game on its merits, no quarter asked or given.
“I wasn’t surprised they beat Scotland because they have some good players, but qualifying for the World Cup has to be earned on the pitch, not decided by sentiment or sympathy.
“I’m convinced we will go about it in the right manner – and this time I’m quietly confident.”