Northern Ireland squad Belfast 1982
Photograph by Martin Wright ©Pacemaker
Published in When Saturday Comes 236, October 2006

In August 1994 I called the photo agency Pacemaker for some pictures of Northern Ireland’s game earlier that year against Liechtenstein. A dry Belfast voice replied: “Can I get back to you, we’re busy with a news story at the moment.” It was the day of the IRA ceasefire.

Established at the onset of the Troubles that dominated life for three decades, Pacemaker’s portfolio forms a vital if disturbing record of hunger strikes, bombings, funerals and sectarian stand-offs. Director David McCormick recalls the violence stoically: “You are not immune but you did become used to it .”

Football was a welcome distraction, but not an escape. The 1981 Home Internationals were abandoned due to England and Wales refusing to travel and the domestic game was marred by sectarianism.

But the national team enjoyed a famous World Cup at Spain 82. Resourceful, pipepuffing manager Billy Bingham could pick Martin O’Neill, Pat Jennings and Sammy McIlroy, but his reserves were drawn from lower leagues. They beat Sweden 3-0 in one qualifier but scored just three goals in the other seven. Their warm-ups promised little (4-0 losses to England and France, 3-0 to Wales), but at the finals they beat the hosts with Gerry Armstrong’s goal.

The squad were welcomed home by a crowd of around 30,000, pictured here by Pacemaker’s Martin Wright. Alongside Bingham and O’Neill are third-choice keeper George Dunlop, Jimmy Nicholl, McIlroy – catching a scarf – and Jim Platt. But Belfast was an edgy city. McCormick recalls: “Sport was much lower profile then and people were nervous about going out. Car bombs were a regular occurrence and large gatherings a potential security risk. Now that the Troubles are not a distraction, people can really indulge in sport. A similar crowd to this turned out for Ulster’s big rugby union wins. David Healy and Steve Davis are feted as heroes and the win over England is still being celebrated.” Martin Wright sadly did not see it, as he died in 2001, but Healy’s goal may now even have surpassed Armstrong’s in cult status. A small matter in NI’s broader history perhaps, but a notable achievement none the less.

Doug Cheeseman
Football Photography Writing