Aberdeen and Dundee United supplant Celtic and Rangers as lead forces in Scottish football.
What football era is not a time of change? There are always events, developments, and controversies that fundamentally alter how football is perceived, supported and paid for.
In Scotland in the 1980s football was looking vibrant: challenges from outside Glasgow gave hope to 'provincial' clubs, and a raft of great players in the Scottish league — not to mention those playing major roles at English clubs — gave the national side a consistency that began to be taken for granted. By the end of the decade there were signs that events in the 1980s would have long-lasting consequences and that the era was pivotal to what the national game has become 30 years later.
Before the 1980s, for as long as anyone could remember, Scottish club football was dominated by Glasgow Rangers and Glasgow Celtic — the league championship was often a straight battle between the two. There were times when other clubs troubled to upset the order and win the league; Hibernian after the Second World War, Heart of Midlothian in the late 1950s, with Dundee and Kilmarnock winning their only championships in the 1960s. At the start of the 1980s a new era was dawning. The question was — would it be a blip as before or the start of a consistent challenge?
Celtic dominated the league throughout the first half of the 1970s, with Rangers responding to Celtic's 'nine in a row' by winning three championships to Celtic's two in the second half of the decade. The 1980s, however, started with new champions — Aberdeen. Aberdeen had been threatening a breakthrough during the 1970s, having been runners-up in the league three times and winning a couple of major trophies — the Scottish Cup in 1970 and the Scottish League Cup in 1976. In 1978 they appointed a young, undoubtedly talented but unproved manager who would grow into the most successful football manager in British football history, knighthood and all, Alex Ferguson.
Ferguson was a former Rangers player and understood the power of the Glasgow clubs — the intimidation by reputation, the size and raucousness of their support, the perceived media bias — and subsequently created a 'them and us' siege mentality at Aberdeen. He also recognised that success in Scotland meant consistency and overcoming the 'Old Firm' (the collective term for the two Glasgow clubs Celtic and Rangers). Despite some stuttering results in the 1979-1980 season, including a demoralising away defeat to Partick Thistle on the first day of the league campaign, Aberdeen had a fabulous record against Celtic and Rangers, losing only one in eight of their league matches. They also embarked on an unbeaten run of 15 games from March until the end of the season, including a title clinching 5-0 deconstruction of the already relegated Hibs (Hibernian) at Easter Road on 3 May 1980. They had a game to spare.
A two-pronged assault on 'Old Firm' hegemony was probably more effective than one side working alone — the second thrust in the pincer movement came from Dundee United. This was another challenge for Aberdeen to overcome for sure, especially in the Scottish League Cup. The tournament was held in the first half of the 1979-1980 season and Aberdeen were yet to become the seemingly unbeatable outfit they were from March 1980. United convincingly won the final, beating Aberdeen 3-0 albeit after a goalless first attempt four days earlier.
United were led by the lugubrious Jim McLean, a former professional footballer from a family of Lanarkshire professional footballers, including brother Tommy, a Rangers mainstay throughout the 1970s. McLean arrived at United in 1971 and set up a youth policy surely to make up for the financial advantage that blessed richer clubs; Alex Ferguson had worked on this at his previous club, St Mirren, and was continuing the job at Aberdeen.
And this, during 1979 and 1980, is where all the effort and work had led; of the three major honours in Scottish football, one had gone to Dundee United, the greatest prize to Aberdeen, with the 'Old Firm' left to scrap out Scottish Cup final. Celtic won the final 1-0 after extra-time, with the fans recording a tawdry score draw in the ensuing riot, which was to have long-term ramifications about who could take what into a football ground and where they could stand.
Celtic reimposed themselves on the League in season 1980-1981
Both Aberdeen and United were gifted with players that were to impress throughout the decade. The League Cup final in 1979 included Alex McLeish, Willie Miller, Gordon Strachan, Steve Archibald and Mark McGhee for Aberdeen and Paul Hegarty, David Narey, Eamonn Bannon and Paul Sturrock for United — these would become serial achievers, Scotland caps and ultimately — after their playing days were done — managers, with varying levels of success, but with the best of mentors in McLean and Ferguson.
Despite the combined talents of Aberdeen and Dundee United, Celtic reimposed themselves on the League in season 1980-1981. Much like Aberdeen the previous year, Celtic had an impressive league run in the second half of that season, aided by the arrival in the first team of Charlie Nicholas. They lost only their final game against St Mirren, having already won the league on 22 April in a defeat of Dundee United. Their efforts in the cups against United were less fortunate, as they were dumped out of both competitions at the semi-final stage against the same side. United went on to defend the League Cup, but lost the Scottish Cup final to Rangers.
The pattern was similar in 1981-1982, Celtic being crowned champions, and Rangers lifting the League Cup, beating Dundee United in their third consecutive final appearance. However, Aberdeen won the Scottish Cup final, memorable for a fantastic curled equaliser from the edge of the box by central-defender Alex McLeish. In the television footage the Rangers defenders can almost be seen collectively deciding 'Aw, it's Alex McLeish, he'll never score from there' as they stand off and watch the ball sail impressively above them and into the top corner. The game was also notable as Aberdeen dismantled Rangers in extra-time, scoring three times to win 4-1, becoming the first non-'Old Firm' team to lift the Scottish Cup since their last win in 1970.
United and Aberdeen were consistently beginning to challenge for top honours, and 1982-1983 was possibly the most spectacular year of their combined success. Aberdeen's victory in the Scottish Cup in May 1982 entitled them to enter the now defunct European Cup Winners' Cup, albeit via a preliminary round which they won at an 11-1 aggregate canter against Sion of Switzerland. The 1982-1983 draw looked ominous, featuring an array of Europe's most prestigious sides. Barcelona and Real Madrid were included, both having failed to win the Spanish League in the previous season; the former were the Cup Winners' Cup holders and featured the prodigious gifts of Diego Maradona. Bayern Munich represented West Germany, and dumped England's representative Tottenham Hotspur out in the second round. Other menacing challenges came in the shape of Internazionale of Milan, and Red Star Belgrade from Yugoslavia.
Aberdeen's first challenge was to get past Albania's Dinamo Tirana, which they did in unspectacular style winning the home leg 1-0, which was enough. Home and away wins against Lech Poznań meant they were 'suddenly' in the quarter final but drawn against Bayern Munich. Away goals in Europe were always useful, and Aberdeen came home from the first leg without one, but they did not concede one either. In the home tie Aberdeen fell behind and equalised twice. With Bayern only needing a draw, John Hewitt pounced on a rebound in the 78th minute to score Aberdeen's third and winning goal. The semi-final was less dramatic and effectively over before the second leg, Aberdeen hammering Belgium's Waterschei Thor 5-1. The date was set for the final on 11 May 1983.
Meanwhile on the domestic front, Dundee United mounted a spectacular challenge in the Premier Division. The season started well, with a defeat of Aberdeen on the first day, but faltered as four draws in the next five matches followed — including away games at Ibrox and at home to Celtic. From mid-October until the end of 1982, United lost only once, and in spectacular fashion with Aberdeen running out 5-1 winners at Pittodrie. But United were also thumping teams — 6-0 (Morton), 5-0 (Motherwell, Kilmarnock) and 7-0 (Kilmarnock). Two consecutive defeats, to Aberdeen again and Rangers, were set-backs to United's challenge but from mid-January they lost only once to their main rivals for the title, Celtic, who they had to play at Parkhead twice in April. They lost the first match, but crucially won the second 3-2. Aberdeen were still in with a shout in the League and helped their own and United causes by defeating Celtic in the run-in.
United survived to be crowned Champions for the first time in their history
The last day of the 1982-1983 season was derby day, and Dundee United ('United') confronted Dundee (simply referred to as 'Dundee') at Dens Park, while Celtic faced the challenge of visiting Ibrox, with Rangers certainly keen to spoil their party. Aberdeen (who don't have a derby) played Hibs at Pittodrie. United had slightly better goal difference and led by a point from Celtic and Aberdeen: a win and they would be champions; a draw and other matches would determine their fate. A loss was unthinkable. Aberdeen laid into Hibs, but could not make up their disadvantage in goal difference despite winning 5-0. Celtic met the inevitable challenge of Rangers by triumphing 4-2. But none of it mattered, as United scored two early goals through a fabulous chip by Ralph Milne and Eamonn Bannon's goal on the rebound from his saved penalty.
Despite a rally by Dundee before half-time as they pulled a goal back, United survived to be crowned Champions for the first time in their history. It was a spectacular success, with a small squad of great entirely Scottish players and an average home gate of 11,137. Jim McLean and United had not accomplished the unlikely. They had achieved the virtually impossible.
By the time the Championship was being decided on 14 May, Aberdeen had also achieved the remarkable. Of Scottish teams' forays into the exotic world of European club competition, only Rangers and Celtic had appeared in European finals — Celtic in the European Cup in 1967 and 1970, famously winning the former, Rangers in the first Cup Winners' Cup Final in 1961, and their victorious match in Barcelona in 1972. Their success was at odds with the dominance of clubs from the larger football nations Spain, Italy, England and West Germany (at the time no team from France had won a European trophy). A club from the cold edge of the North East of Scotland was not the likeliest candidate for winning an international club competition, especially against the anointed giants of European football, Real Madrid.
But again a team of Scots defied likelihood — on a soggy, tense night in Gothenburg, Sweden, Aberdeen met Real. The Dons took an early lead when a corner to the edge of the box was headed towards goal by McLeish and a poor attempted clearance by Juan José deflected the ball to 'Eric-on-the-spot' Black who swivelled and tucked the loose ball away from all of three yards. After only 14 minutes Real equalised from the penalty spot through Juanito; Leighton had upended Santillana who had run on to an ill-considered McLeish back-pass to provide the opportunity. As the pitch cut-up and the rain fell, that was the scoring over for regulation time.
Extra time was goalless until eight minutes from the end, when a good ball on the left from Peter Weir gave Mark McGhee space to run at the Real defence. A quick burst of speed and a left-footed cross eluded the entire Real defence, but not the diving header of John Hewitt who fired the ball into an empty net and flopped into the mud in the six yard box, only to leap up, flail in mid-air like a scarecrow, and run off in delight, taking time to wipe his muddied hands on his shirt … And a squad consisting entirely of Scots, led by a Scottish manager, had won one of Europe's top prizes, on a considerably smaller budget and with a much smaller home support than the Glasgow sides.
As the league title eluded Aberdeen that season, and after the strength-sapping, joyful night in Gothenburg, Aberdeen had one more match for honours — the Scottish Cup final against Rangers. The latter were trophy-less, and Aberdeen were wrecked from the hunt for three trophies. But Rangers were unable to capitalise, and even a pedestrian Aberdeen side left Hampden with the victory spoils after more extra-time. The players were probably too exhausted to heed Alex Ferguson's post-match, live on TV, on-the-pitch rant about the standards Aberdeen had set, and that the performance had not been good enough, despite the victory. Ungracious, perhaps, but it was an illustration of the man's ambition, and a lesson in how not to approach PR especially when referring to his own team.
In the subsequent season, Aberdeen did not rest on their laurels — a league and Scottish Cup 'double' was unheard of outside Glasgow, until Aberdeen achieved it in 1983-1984. Their progress in the league was spectacular, losing only four games over the entire season, and crucially only two losses in games against their main rivals — Celtic, Dundee United and Rangers. Their cup win over Celtic was their third in succession; they practically owned the Scottish Cup in this period. And while they were at it, they won the European Super Cup against S V Hamburg, who were the European Champions. Of five tournaments entered, Aberdeen won three, stumbling at the semi-final stage of the League and Cup Winners' Cups.
Aberdeen's success was 'curtailed' in 1984-1985 — they 'only' won the league, again losing a mere four games, and once more by a winning margin of seven points over Celtic. Dundee United's form in the two seasons since becoming champions fell, but they, like Celtic and Rangers, remained a constant threat. Unlike Celtic and Rangers, trophies eluded them, and unbeknownst at the time, their 1983 league win would be their last major honour until the 1990s.
However, United did enjoy a spectacular run in the European Cup in 1983-1984 reaching the semi-final, where they met A S Roma. The first home leg, was a famous 2-0 victory. The return was, sadly, a convincing 3-0 defeat against the Romans who had the incentive of a final in their home ground, a final they subsequently lost to the all-conquering Liverpool.
