Sporting Bygones: Hodgson’s boys following the path of Hoddle and company as England prepare to make their World Cup return to Moldova

And if Three Lions manager Roy Hodgson can emulate what Glenn Hoddle achieved on Sunday, September 1, 1996, do not expect him to be complaining.

England were on a high after the ‘Football’s Coming Home’ jamboree of Euro 1996, despite – yet again – succumbing to their nemesis Germany, losing out in heart-breaking fashion on penalties a mere 66 days before starting out their bid to reach France ’98 under Hoddle, when they were a shoo-in for a Group Two victory at Chisinau’s Republican Stadium.

That was duly achieved in a comfortable enough 3-0 win as England avoided a case of the September stutters, something that most famously afflicted them in 1981 when they lost a World Cup qualifier in Norway, much to the delight of the of late Norwegian commentator Bjorge Lillelien who reminded the likes of Lord Nelson, Lord Beaverbrook, Clement Atlee and Maggie Thatcher that their boys had taken ‘one hell of a beating’.

And in recent times, who can forget Leeds United striker David Healy’s winner for Northern Ireland in a famous World Cup qualifying upset against Sven Goran Eriksson’s England at Windsor Park, which, ironically, took place seven years ago on Friday.

There were no such problems in the landlocked Eastern European nation of Moldova – who played their first game as an independent nation only five years earlier – in Hoddle’s first outing, a game also famous for being the first cap of David Beckham’s illustrious 115-game international career.

Another debutant was sworn in, with Everton’s Andy Hinchcliffe – later to join Sheffield Wednesday – making his bow with Blues team-mate and former Hull boss Nick Barmby awarded his fifth cap in a line-up devoid of Euro 96 stalwarts Teddy Sherringham, Steve McManaman, Tony Adams and Darren Anderton.

That said, despite England becoming overwhelming favourites in the first meeting between the two sides, they were handed somewhat of a scare on eight minutes when Miterev found himself in space in front of England’s goal, only to produce 
a tame shot straight at Rotherham-born goalkeeper David Seaman.

England gradually settled and soothed the nerves with a quick-fire double midway through the first half in front of a crowd of 9,500.

The first came on 24 minutes when Gary Neville delivered an inch-perfect right-wing cross with Hull lad Barmby – in splendid isolation in the area – coolly steering a low right-footed volley into the net for his third goal for his country.

Just a minute later, Paul Gascoigne – on the back of a scintillating summer campaign with England when the nation again firmly took him to their hearts again – struck when Paul Ince latched onto Barmby’s cross and helped the ball on into the direction of the maverick Geordie genius, who looped a header past Romanerico.

Game, set and match to England and Hoddle pretty much. Yet despite being two goals down, Moldova – a nation more famous for old monasteries and fights against invaders ranging from the Turks and Tartars to 
the Russians and Ukrainians over the centuries – did not surrender with Miterey, Popovici and Curtianu prompting the hosts intelligently.

Five minutes before the interval, England were denied a blatant penalty when new England captain Alan Shearer was tugged in the area by Testemitanu, with Finnish referee Ilca Koho unmoved.

The Newcastle striker then missed a glorious chance in front of goal moments later before putting the tie to bed 16 minutes into the second half.

Good work by Gareth Southgate and Beckham set up Neville, whose through ball was diverted by a defender into the path of Shearer, who prodded the ball into the net to claim his first international goal away from Wembley.

After that, the game was played out to a conclusion with former Leeds midfield dynamo David Batty – who joined Newcastle from Blackburn that March – and Matt Le Tissier thrown into the fray for the last nine minutes with the only moment of note seeing Testemitanu blast a late penalty against the bar after Stuart Pearce was adjudged to have handled.

On his reaction to the display, Hoddle refused to get carried away, saying: “I was very pleased but there’s room for improvement.”

In the reverse fixture against the Moldovans the following September, England enjoyed a 4-0 cruise with Ian Wright firing a double – and they lost just one game en route to qualification for France 98 on a famous night in Rome with the likes of Gascoigne and the bandaged Ince being the stars in a 0-0 draw with the Azzurri in October, 1997.

All roads lead to Moldova again this week and the capital city of Chisinau, albeit at a different venue in the shape of the $11m Zimbru Stadium, opened in August, 2006 as they start the route to Rio.

And while some have labelled England’s group – also containing perennial qualification opponents Poland as well as Ukraine, Montenegro and San Marino – as a Group of Death, deathly boredom that this, you suspect the nation will not be complaining too much if ‘Roy’s Boys’ claim their World Cup place in Brazil, mostly likely in the autumn of next year.