1983 British Home Championship

The 1983 British Home Championship was the penultimate in the series of football tournaments between the British Home Nations which stretched back 99 years to 1884. In 1983 England and then Scotland announced their withdrawal from future competition after the 1984 competition with the arrangement of the Rous Cup between the two nations to eliminate Wales and Northern Ireland, who were seen as weaker opposition. The 1983 tournament was a tight contest, which England won with a final victory at home over Scotland following an opening victory over Wales and a draw in Belfast. The game at Wembley was played in midweek in an attempt to curb the large number of travelling Scottish supporters. The Scots came second with a win over Wales and a draw with Northern Ireland off-setting their final day defeat. The Welsh succumbed to goal difference as the points system then in use meant that the Irish, who had drawn twice and lost once without scoring themselves gained the same number of points for a smaller goal difference despite Wales' victory over them in their final game.

Table

The points system worked as follows:
* 2 points for a win
* 1 point for a drawThe teams were then divided on goal difference

Results

footballbox
date = February 23, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|England
score = 2 – 1
team2 = fb|Wales
goals1 = Terry Butcher goal
Phil Neal goal|pen.
goals2 = Ian Rush goal
stadium = Wembley Stadium, London----footballbox
date = May 24, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|Scotland
score = 0 – 0
team2 = fb|Northern Ireland
goals1 =
goals2 =
stadium = Hampden Park, Glasgow----footballbox
date = May 28, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|Northern Ireland
score = 0 – 0
team2 = fb|England
goals1 =
goals2 =
stadium = Windsor Park, Belfast----footballbox
date = May 28, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|Wales
score = 0 – 2
team2 = fb|Scotland
goals1 =
goals2 = Andy Gray goal
Alan Brazil goal
stadium = Ninian Park, Cardiff----footballbox
date = April 31, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|Northern Ireland
score = 0 – 1
team2 = fb|Wales
goals1 =
goals2 = Gordon Davies goal
stadium = Windsor Park, Belfast----footballbox
date = June 1, 1983
team1 = fb-rt|England
score = 2 – 0
team2 = fb|Scotland
goals1 = Bryan Robson goal
Gordon Cowans goal
goals2 =
stadium = Wembley Stadium, London

References

*cite book
author= Guy Oliver| title=The Guinness Record of World Soccer
date=1992
publisher=Guinness
id=ISBN 0-851129-54-4