Someone on the message board asked the other day about the team that beat Scotland's under 16 team in the 1989 World Youth Cup final played at Hampden. In those halcyon days when Scotland actually made a final, the crowd that day was surprised to see the difference in maturity between the two sides. It could be that the Saudi Arabian side were culled from the side that played in the under 20 Youth Cup tournament held in the middle east during February-March of that year. I would not like to speculate but the difference was clear in the facial hair department for all to see. It had a look of men against boys but Scotland's boys were backed by (from 'not checking the record books' memory) nearly 60,000 fans on the glorious sunny day. Depending on which type of record book you look at, the competition was either Under 16, Under 17, or Under 20. The proof of age documentation must have been checked at the time but it is interesting to see what ages the players are admitting to now that they have carried on their careers.
Al Deayea's day did not get any better
According to the records, the goalie, Mohammed Al Deayea, that lined up against Scotland back on the 24th June 1989 is now 29 years of age. He went on to win nearly 170 caps in the 12 years virtually uninterrupted service for his country between the posts. He is over at his third World Cup finals at the moment and had to bend his back rather a lot in their first game against Germany. Al Deayea's memories of that game at Hampden are still clear who said: "Those were magic moments, still very much in my head. It was an unprecedented achievement at all levels by any Asian national team, and from then on, there was no looking back for me at the personal level."
Interesting to note that despite the age difference, Scotland managed to be leading 2-0 at half time, thanks to goals from Downie (in the 7th minute) and Dickov (in the 25th). Now what ever happened to Dickov? However, the Arabians fought back and forced the game into extra time and then penalties. The Saudi goals came from Al-Reshoudi (49th minute) and Al-Tereir (in the 65th). I wonder is Al-Tereir is any relation to Der Terrier?
