Bully for you.
The amazing rise of Steve Bull.
Welcome to today’s edition of the Retro Football Network. This is a two-parter, with the second one available in one week. I hope you enjoy it as I return to the 1980s and 1990s and recall the fairy tale story of one of the era’s best goal scorers.
Time to return towards the end of a decade:
As the ball falls out of the sky, it hits his back and drops in front him. Without hesitation, his first thought is to shoot. His first-time effort flies into the bottom corner. The striker from the third division has scored on his international debut. The summariser on TV, a former England player himself, quickly praises the goal. The commentator also compliments the scorer.
It sounds like a dream or a story from Roy of the Rovers. But on 27th May 1989, this was reality for Steve Bull, the free-scoring number nine of third tier Wolverhampton Wanderers. Replacing John Fashanu, Bull came on as a substitute at Hampden Park to win his first England cap.
His strike sealed a 2-0 win for the visitors, following Chris Waddle’s first-half header. He celebrated his debut goal with Paul Gascoigne, skipper Bryan Robson and Waddle. Bull had been terrorising lower league defences for his club since his arrival at Molineux. Now he had announced himself to a much larger audience and was rubbing shoulders with greats.
But how did he get there in the first place?
