Wednesday 17 June 2009

The day an SM Hellas player scored in the world cup

It's a little recalled event outside New Zealand soccer junkie circles, but Monday marked the 27th anniversary of the All Whites world cup debut in Spain against a Scotland side which included such stars as Souness, Strachan, Hansen and Dalglish. The All Whites lost 5-2 - though they did manage to pull it back to 3-2 after being 3-0 down - but what is of relevance here to South fans is an oft overlooked moment in the club's history, perhaps because it didn't happen at the club. Steve Wooddin became the first ever and probably the only current Hellas player (in that he was playing for South at the time) to score a goal in a World Cup finals match. In the clip below, he scores the second goal for New Zealand, a nice left foot finish. All up Wooddin reached 40 league games scoring only 6 goals for South in his 1981-83 stint, before returning to New Zealand to play for Christchurch United. A recurring ankle injury led to his premature retirement, but for one day at least Steve Wooddin was king of the world.

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