SC Weiz versus Fürstenfeld in the Landesliga Steiermark. I won't insult anyone by explaining which tier of Austrian football we are talking about. Weiz have a free-kick 25 yards from goal. Kevin Steiner stands over the ball. There are six players in the defensive wall. There's no draught excluder; this is 2012 - there were no draughts that required excluding.
All regulation stuff except that halfway between the ball and the wall are two players from the attacking team, on their knees - creating their own dummy wall - worryingly close to the ball. Steiner takes a short run-up and absolutely belts the ball into the face of one of his teammates. He'd been protecting his delicates with one hand, the other across his shoulder. His head is just exposed - it's point blank range. He crumples to the floor and Fürstenfeld launch a counterattack.
The camera pans to the bench: standing alongside the manager is a young, long-haired man shaking his head. On closer inspection, it's Austin MacPhee - now the acclaimed set-piece coach at Aston Villa.
OK, it's not Austin MacPhee. At the time he was playing a pivotal coaching role at St Mirren, helping them to Scottish League Cup glory. But the rest of it is true - a brilliantly ridiculous set-piece idea, executed more terribly than you could ever dream.
Denne historien er fra December 20, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra December 20, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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