WATCH: 35 years ago today, Ray Houghton stuck the ball in the English net

Ireland fans celebrate

Ireland fans celebrated again when Ireland reached the Euros in 2016 in France. Credit: Al Robinson (ETPhotos)

On this day in 1988, Ray Houghton carved his name into Irish football folklore as he scored Ireland’s first-ever goal at a major international tournament.

And it proved to be more than just a landmark moment as Houghton stuck the ball in the English net to earn a famous 1-0 victory for the Boys in Green.

The then-26-year-old Liverpool midfielder latched onto a John Aldridge flick to nod the ball past England keeper Peter Shilton after just six minutes in Stuttgart.

Kenny Sansom’s failure to clear a Tony Galvin cross allowed Aldridge to nod the ball to his Anfield clubmate and the Glasgow man made no mistake from ten yards.

Singer-songwriter Christy Moore would later immortalise the moment in his classic tune Joxer Goes to Stuttgart, a dramatic re-telling of a historic day.

It was an emotional day for Ireland manager Jack Charlton as he took on his country of birth - with whom he won the World Cup in 1966 - and his charges held on for a narrow win.

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