Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
This is South Wales -- SWANSEA City's European adventures have so far spanned 30 years — from 1962 to 1992 — and produced more than 60 goals. A whopping 68 have been scored in just 18 matches, although it has not always been the opposition net bulging. Two years after the European Cup Winners' Cup was founded, Swansea qualified for the competition after beating Bangor in the Welsh Cup final. On the surface, it represented a bright new chapter in the club's history, but that excitement soon subsided. Swansea were drawn against Motor Jena and that made things complicated. Following the Second World War, the East German side's movements were restricted, meaning Swansea had to play their 'home' leg just across the Austrian border, in Linz. That game ended in a 2-2 draw, with Swansea's goals scored by Brayley Reynolds and Mel Nurse. But the travelling took its toll and when Swansea returned for the second match in Jena, they were thumped 5-1. Swansea's next European involvement came five years later when they endured an equally unhappy time, losing 5-1 on aggregate to Slavia Sofia. The feeling was that the club was ill-equipped for the demands of such a competition, but Swansea fared far better against Lokomotiv Leipzig in 1981. Now a First Division side, John Toshack's men were able to put up a much more competitive performance, though they still ended up bowing out of the competition at the first hurdle. After losing the first game 1-0, Jeremy Charles scored Swansea's goal as they also lost the second leg 2-1. It was in the following season that Swansea made their first progress in Europe. They cruised past Portuguese side Sporting Braga 3-1 on aggregate. Charles bagged a double, and an own goal saw Swansea win 3-0 as they progressed despite suffering an away defeat. That set up a memorable game against Sliema Wanderers in which Swansea recorded the biggest win in their history. The Maltese minnows were pummelled 12-0 at the Vetch as Ian Walsh hit a hat-trick and Jimmy Loveridge scored twice along with Charles, while Colin Irwin, Ante Rajkovic, Nigel Stevenson, Bob Latchford and Dzemal Hadziabdic were all on target. It was also one-sided in the away leg where Alan Curtis (two), Darren Gale (two) and Toshack ensured a 17-0 aggregate triumph. Swansea progressed to a tie against renowned French outfit Paris St Germain, where they were dispatched 1-0 and 2-0. In the next season Swansea were knocked out by German side IFC Magdeburg before a six-year break from European action. Their next foray on to foreign soil proved to be an exhilarating affair. Swansea found themselves 3-0 down away to Panathinaikos after eight minutes of the second half, but showed tremendous character to haul themselves back into the tie thanks to goals from Paul Raynor and John Salako. In the return match, Swansea moved 2-0 ahead at the Vetch thanks to a Robbie James penalty and the first of two goals from Andy Melville, but two controversial refereeing decisions helped the Greeks to a 3-3 draw and a 6-5 win overall. Swansea's most recent competitive game against glamorous foreign opposition was in 1991 when they were drawn against Monaco. Arsene Wenger sat in the away dugout at the Vetch as a Swansea squad featuring a string of youth players produced a creditable performance to lose 2-1. Andy Legg scored Swansea's goal, but they where thumped 8-0 in the second leg by classy opponents.
Reported by This is 16 hours ago.
Clik here to view.
This is South Wales -- SWANSEA City's European adventures have so far spanned 30 years — from 1962 to 1992 — and produced more than 60 goals. A whopping 68 have been scored in just 18 matches, although it has not always been the opposition net bulging. Two years after the European Cup Winners' Cup was founded, Swansea qualified for the competition after beating Bangor in the Welsh Cup final. On the surface, it represented a bright new chapter in the club's history, but that excitement soon subsided. Swansea were drawn against Motor Jena and that made things complicated. Following the Second World War, the East German side's movements were restricted, meaning Swansea had to play their 'home' leg just across the Austrian border, in Linz. That game ended in a 2-2 draw, with Swansea's goals scored by Brayley Reynolds and Mel Nurse. But the travelling took its toll and when Swansea returned for the second match in Jena, they were thumped 5-1. Swansea's next European involvement came five years later when they endured an equally unhappy time, losing 5-1 on aggregate to Slavia Sofia. The feeling was that the club was ill-equipped for the demands of such a competition, but Swansea fared far better against Lokomotiv Leipzig in 1981. Now a First Division side, John Toshack's men were able to put up a much more competitive performance, though they still ended up bowing out of the competition at the first hurdle. After losing the first game 1-0, Jeremy Charles scored Swansea's goal as they also lost the second leg 2-1. It was in the following season that Swansea made their first progress in Europe. They cruised past Portuguese side Sporting Braga 3-1 on aggregate. Charles bagged a double, and an own goal saw Swansea win 3-0 as they progressed despite suffering an away defeat. That set up a memorable game against Sliema Wanderers in which Swansea recorded the biggest win in their history. The Maltese minnows were pummelled 12-0 at the Vetch as Ian Walsh hit a hat-trick and Jimmy Loveridge scored twice along with Charles, while Colin Irwin, Ante Rajkovic, Nigel Stevenson, Bob Latchford and Dzemal Hadziabdic were all on target. It was also one-sided in the away leg where Alan Curtis (two), Darren Gale (two) and Toshack ensured a 17-0 aggregate triumph. Swansea progressed to a tie against renowned French outfit Paris St Germain, where they were dispatched 1-0 and 2-0. In the next season Swansea were knocked out by German side IFC Magdeburg before a six-year break from European action. Their next foray on to foreign soil proved to be an exhilarating affair. Swansea found themselves 3-0 down away to Panathinaikos after eight minutes of the second half, but showed tremendous character to haul themselves back into the tie thanks to goals from Paul Raynor and John Salako. In the return match, Swansea moved 2-0 ahead at the Vetch thanks to a Robbie James penalty and the first of two goals from Andy Melville, but two controversial refereeing decisions helped the Greeks to a 3-3 draw and a 6-5 win overall. Swansea's most recent competitive game against glamorous foreign opposition was in 1991 when they were drawn against Monaco. Arsene Wenger sat in the away dugout at the Vetch as a Swansea squad featuring a string of youth players produced a creditable performance to lose 2-1. Andy Legg scored Swansea's goal, but they where thumped 8-0 in the second leg by classy opponents.
Reported by This is 16 hours ago.
