Remembering Aberdeen’s famous European victory over Ipswich ahead of summer friendly.

The Dons will face the Tractor Boys in a pre-season match next month, and the news of their July meeting brings back memories of a legendary European night at Pittodrie.

In 1981, Adam and the Ants were at the top of the charts, the BBC aired its debut season of Postman Pat, and the Brixton Riots grabbed headlines after violent riots in London.

It was a year full of storylines, and one sporting story that stood out in Scotland’s back pages was Aberdeen’s continued climb under Sir Alex Ferguson, following their first league title win under the renowned manager the previous year.

With that success in the 1980s came plenty of European football, but their European Cup run was cut short by Bob Paisley’s Liverpool, who ran riot at Anfield the previous year, knocking the Reds out of the competition.

They had to bounce back, but they were dealt a terrible UEFA Cup draw against Sir Bobby Robson’s Ipswich Town, who were at the top of their game at the time.

The Tractor Boys won European gold with a thrilling victory over AZ Alkmaar in the 1981 final, and Ferguson’s side faced a formidable assignment when they were drawn together in the first round of the competition months later, in Amsterdam. Join our Aberdeen FC Facebook group for the latest Dons news.

Pittodrie was Aberdeen’s citadel, but it would take considerable effort to stop a talented Ipswich team that included nine internationals.

When Ferguson faced Robson, it quickly became known as a clash of two of the greatest managers in British football history, with newspapers hailing Ipswich as the most ‘perfect’ side in football at the time.

Town, often regarded as the best side to never win the title, faced a daunting task in dethroning Liverpool, who were virtually unbeatable under Paisley.

But Robson was eager to put on a show and did his research on the Dons.

He flew north to witness them play Airdrie in the League Cup in preparation for their late September doubleheader. Ferguson became aware of his presence and rested his standout players who had already advanced from the group stages, but Robson’s visit only made the manager apprehensive of the mind games the Englishman was attempting to play.

Aberdeen would travel to Portman Road first, having been written off before a ball was kicked following their Merseyside humiliation, but they had momentum from defeating Partick Thistle the previous game.

Only 2,000 Dons fans could fit into the stadium, but as with the recent events at Hampden against a vociferous Celtic crowd, they made a lot of noise.

Stats have become the dominant element of football in many respects, and Ferguson will have been concerned of Ipswich’s superb defence, which had conceded only seven goals in 19 European games.

 

But Aberdeen stunned their hosts early on, with a full-throttle approach that had Town rattled before they finally challenged Jim Leighton in goal about half an hour into the match.

John Hewitt forced an incredible save from Paul Cooper, and Gordon Strachan was causing havoc down the wing, but Frans Thijssen’s moment of brilliance erased all of the hard work.

The Dutchman rifled a strong shot towards goal, and the dominant visitors were suddenly trailing despite putting on a display that deserved to lead.

They had that fight in them, too, as Doug Rougvie and Alex McLeish caused enough issues to allow Hewitt to unleash a tremendous effort of his own, defeating Cooper and eliciting joy from the much outnumbered Red Army.

There would be no retaliation, but there would be plenty of excitement leading up to the Pittodrie homecoming, with Ipswich spooked and the Dons returning to their fortress certain they could compete with the ‘whole’ team.

McLeish later said that Ipswich’s UEFA Cup Final hero and Scotland international John Wark had paid Aberdeen a visit to congratulate them on their achievements, but he could sense their unhappiness.

Robson was far less complimentary of the Dons. He declared the tie done and insisted Ferguson’s side were spent and would be turned over in the return leg.

Clearly, his preparation on all things Aberdeen did not include researching what a night in front of almost 20,000 fans in red could do to his team. Strachan attempted to make his imprint by stealing the ball from Wark, but the Town star compounded his folly by flooring the midfielder in the box.

Unshaken, Strachan shot beyond Cooper, regaining the lead for Aberdeen, albeit there was still a long way to go until the game was decided.

Wark redeemed himself with his second penalty of the night, this time from Neale Cooper for tripping Eric Gates; Leighton was unable to prevent the equaliser. If someone was going to change the outcome, they needed to put on an all-time second-half performance.

Peter Weir stepped up, putting on a show that many who were present that night will never forget.

He waltzed towards goal and struck the bottom corner, leaving Cooper helpless and unhappy, but that feeling was only exacerbated when Weir repeated his heroics five minutes from time.

He hammered a second past the keeper, and the Dons appeared to have defeated the team Robson had predicted would win at Pittodrie. It should have been four, with Aberdeen granted another penalty, but Strachan’s strike was ruled out for encroachment, forcing Cooper to make a superb save. But it didn’t matter because celebrations erupted throughout Pittodrie and the Dons revelled in their latest heroics, with Ferguson silencing even more detractors.

Robson’s season was now solely about the title race with Liverpool, but he lost out and would replace Ron Greenwood as England manager, meaning he never got to taste success in the First Division.

Aberdeen, meanwhile, faltered, and after defeating Romanian club Arges Pitesti 5-2 on aggregate in the second round, eventual runners-up Hamburg eliminated them 5-4.

Things would change dramatically the following time the Dons met Hamburg, as the European Cup Winners’ Cup winners added a European Super Cup to their trophy cabinet. While next month’s encounter has no significance other than serving as a prelude to the upcoming season, it is a fixture against English opposition with far more history than others, and it will be eagerly awaited.

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