Here are some fan recollections of the Cup win - get your hankies out there may be a tear or two shed here!
| Cup Memories |
| Graeme Wright |
| My memories of the 18 May 1991 are very clear and will remain with me for a long time, it was an absolute dream come true. I was not at the Cup final; I was at home in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. It all started for me a few weeks before when Motherwell played Celtic in the semi-final at Hampden Park. I had confidence that the 'Well could return a winning result. The morning after the game my mother called me from East Kilbride with the result a draw. I thought that is it "you never get a second chance with the Old Firm in Cup semi-finals". My expectation for the return game was very low. On the day of the replay I was in Montreal with my job, my wife had the hotel telephone number to contact me with the news when it came from Scotland. I got a call early in the morning, Motherwell 4 Celtic 2, that cannot be right "you never get a second chance with the Old Firm in Cup semi-finals". I called East Kilbride from my hotel room to confirm the result, well you have heard about the dog with two "d…s", it was better than that. My next reaction was, I have got to get to that final, I cannot miss the first Motherwell Scottish Cup final in 39 years. I quickly completed my task in Montreal and drove back to Oshawa; a five-hour drive. The first place I headed for was to my travel agent buddy. "So Graeme", he said, "where are you going and when". "Fly into Glasgow Friday 17 May or early Saturday 18 May and return Sunday 19 May", I replied. "That will be about $6000 (about £3000)", ouch, "but if you stay a week is it about $500". Much to my regret I could not stay a week as we were flying out to Western Canada during that week on a previously arranged holiday. Oh well, I will find a bar that is showing the game live via satellite. For the next few weeks I called dozens of places in Southern Ontario, yes they were showing the Cup Final live…. THE ENGLISH CUP FINAL. Life has some cruel twists. Cup final day 18 May 1991, I am in the basement, I have my short wave radio tuned to the BBC World Service. They are broadcasting THE ENGLISH CUP FINAL, but promised to keep listeners up to date if and when goals were scored at Hampden. I was wearing my claret and amber woolen tammy with a pom-pom dating back from 1972 and two claret and amber scarves. Everyone is well aware the order the goals came, if you guys in the stands and terracing were delivering canaries, just imagine how I was, having to endure the THE ENGLISH CUP FINAL, and only getting told when a goal was scored at Hampden…. It was exhausting and nerve racking. Now it is into extra time the BBC broadcast has stopped from London, can it get any worse for me? I called my father in law in East Kilbride and he relayed the whole extra time to me "live by telephone". Steve (super sub) Kirk scores, the telephone flies in the air and disconnects, I have to call East Kilbride again to get the last minutes of extra time. The game finishes, I burst into tears, my dream has come true, Motherwell have won the Cup for me. I had been a constant fixture at Fir Park since the age of eleven in 1972, I had dreamt about Scottish Cup success. I remember a very cold night at Hampden in 1976, we played Rangers in the semi-final, after leading 2-0 at half time, I was convinced that Hearts would fall to Motherwell in the final. It all came crashing down thanks to JPR Gordon of Newport on Tay (the ref) and Derek Johnstone (the penalty taker). That was the first time I shed a tear at a game. When I returned to the supporters bus to take us back to East Kilbride, everybody else was the same, not a single word was spoken on that bus on the way home. Now back to 18 May 1991. It would now be about 1.00pm early afternoon for me, I wanted to have a party, get drunk, shake hands, go to Fir Park, have the celebration of a life time but I could not, nobody understood it like me, nobody that I knew cared. I called my parents in East Kilbride they shared in my joy briefly…..and that was it. I went outside and cut the grass, it was a very warm sunny afternoon. After that I walked to a card store and bought the biggest Congratulations Card I could find, wrote out my appreciation of the team winning the Cup and sent it to off to Fir Park. A couple of weeks later I got a letter from Tommy McLean thanking me for the card. Tommy's letter is now proudly in a frame on the wall of my basement adjacent to my 1990/91 Cup Winners pendant and these items are topped with my Claret and Amber 1990/91 Cup Winners scarf. I think of that day often and I have decided that regardless of the cost or inconvenience I will be at Motherwell's next Scottish Cup Final even it takes another 39 years to the year 2030, I will be there. |
| Cup Memories (2) |
| Cup Win 1991 Index |