1973 British Home Championship
Encyclopedia
The 1973 British Home Championship
international Home Nations
football
tournament was, like its predecessor in 1972
, a victim of The Troubles
in Northern Ireland
which had erupted following Bloody Sunday
the previous year. As with the previous year in the rugby union
1972 Five Nations Championship
, threats were made by Republican activists against visiting British teams, which in this year meant England
and Wales
. To prevent violence but keep the tournament running, Northern Ireland's
"home" games were transferred to Goodison Park
, the home of Everton F.C.
in Liverpool
in England. This step meant that Ireland played just a short ferry ride from Belfast (where the match was originally scheduled) in a city with a substantial Irish population, but where the police were able to exercise a greater measure of control over who was able to attend.
The shift to England did not substantially hinder the Irish, who claimed a rare and respectable second place behind England, who achieved yet another whitewash of their near neighbours. Beating the Irish in Liverpool to match Scotland's
win over Wales, England then inflicted defeat on the same team at Wembley, whilst the Irish recovered from their first game to beat the Scots in Scotland. In the final two games, Northern Ireland beat Wales, setting up a close encounter in the final game, in which the winner would take the tournament but a draw would benefit the Irish. The game was a close encounter, made more interesting by an English 5–0 thrashing of Scotland two months earlier in a testimonial match celebrating one hundred years of international football. England however, eventually triumphed by a single goal from Martin Peters, winning the trophy for another year.
The points system worked as follows:
----
----
----
----
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
international Home Nations
Home Nations
Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on the context. Politically, it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
tournament was, like its predecessor in 1972
1972 British Home Championship
The 1972 British Home Championship was the first such Home Nations football tournament , to suffer during The Troubles in Northern Ireland, when death threats from the Provisional Irish Republican Army were sent to the Scottish Football Association and Scottish players who were scheduled to play at...
, a victim of The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
which had erupted following Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday (1972)
Bloody Sunday —sometimes called the Bogside Massacre—was an incident on 30 January 1972 in the Bogside area of Derry, Northern Ireland, in which twenty-six unarmed civil rights protesters and bystanders were shot by soldiers of the British Army...
the previous year. As with the previous year in the rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
1972 Five Nations Championship
1972 Five Nations Championship
The 1972 Five Nations Championship was the forty-third series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the seventy-eighth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. The championship was not...
, threats were made by Republican activists against visiting British teams, which in this year meant England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
and Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
. To prevent violence but keep the tournament running, Northern Ireland's
Northern Ireland national football team
The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. Before 1921 all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association...
"home" games were transferred to Goodison Park
Goodison Park
Goodison Park is a football stadium located in Walton, Liverpool, England. The stadium has been home to Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892 and is one of the world's first purpose-built football grounds...
, the home of Everton F.C.
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
in England. This step meant that Ireland played just a short ferry ride from Belfast (where the match was originally scheduled) in a city with a substantial Irish population, but where the police were able to exercise a greater measure of control over who was able to attend.
The shift to England did not substantially hinder the Irish, who claimed a rare and respectable second place behind England, who achieved yet another whitewash of their near neighbours. Beating the Irish in Liverpool to match Scotland's
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
win over Wales, England then inflicted defeat on the same team at Wembley, whilst the Irish recovered from their first game to beat the Scots in Scotland. In the final two games, Northern Ireland beat Wales, setting up a close encounter in the final game, in which the winner would take the tournament but a draw would benefit the Irish. The game was a close encounter, made more interesting by an English 5–0 thrashing of Scotland two months earlier in a testimonial match celebrating one hundred years of international football. England however, eventually triumphed by a single goal from Martin Peters, winning the trophy for another year.
Table
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||
| 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | −6 |
The points system worked as follows:
- 2 points for a win
- 1 point for a draw
Results
--------
----
----
----