Eu Reds: Nantes

Concluding a near four-month European anniversary mini-series, cliftonvillefc.net today reflects on the Club’s first ever away game in continental competition.

Today marks 41 years since the Reds visited Stade Marcel Saupin for the second leg of a Cup Winners’ Cup first round clash with French giants FC Nantes Atlantique, who entered the game a goal to the good courtesy of Gilles Rampillon’s strike at Solitude a fortnight earlier.

Encouraged by their performance on that occasion, Cliftonville travelled with every confidence that they could turn the tie on its head but, inside just three minutes, Oscar Trossero had doubled Nantes’ aggregate advantage ahead of Eric Pecout, Rampillon and Patrice Rio finding the net before half-time.

Pecout’s second goal of the game made it 5-0 on the night, with Trossero completing a brace of his own and Pecout sealing a hat-trick in an overall 8-0 success for the hosts, who overcame Steaua Bucharest and Dynamo Moscow in subsequent rounds before being eliminated by Valencia at the semi-final stage.

Cliftonville: Johnston, Mills, Largey, Flanagan, Quinn, McCurry, McCusker, O’Connor, Hewitt, Adair, Bell.
Subs: McGuckin (for Largey), Smyth (for McCurry).