Cardiff City welcome Middlesbrough to South Wales on Saturday and Dai Sport’s Terry Phillips looks back 16 years to the Bluebirds’ promotion thanks to a goal by former ‘Boro striker Andy Campbell.
Andy Campbell was a central figure in the celebrations following the Bluebirds’ 1-0 win against Queens Park Rangers in a play-off final at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.
Former ‘Boro manager Lennie Lawrence was in charge of Cardiff City and the win earned Championship status.
The post-match party was held in a bar, owned by a sporting consortium which included ex-Cardiff, Swansea, Wrexham, Newport and Wales player David Giles, just over the road from the stadium.
Players packed into the bar, which is now a Spanish tapas restaurant, and the City players were jubilant.
Around the city, Bluebirds supporters were toasting Campbell’s extra time winner, while the players were singing his name in a private party.
I went into the players party, but was officially on duty and couldn’t drink. Players were too busy singing and enjoying themselves to stop for interviews – and seemed to delight in pouring beer over my head.
“The celebrations were never ending,” said goalscorer Campbell. “People were partying on until Tuesday and Wednesday and we just rode that wave with our supporters.
“We made sure that everyone enjoyed what we’d achieved as a club.”
I have stayed in contact with Campbell, meeting up with him in Middlesbrough, where he attends games regularly, and when he was a guest speaker at Merthyr Town.
He is from Marton, near Stockton-on-Tees – the town where captain Cook was born in 1728 – and his nearest club was Middlesbrough. That’s where he started his playing days.
HIs childhood hero was Scottish forward Bernie Slaven, who made more than 300 league appearances for ‘Boro,
“I always supported Middlesbrough as a young boy after following in my dad’s footsteps,” says Campbell. “He was a passionate football fan who loved the game and that’s why I got into football.
“I’m a Boro boy at heart and I idolised all the players at the club, but my ultimate hero was Bernie Slaven. I loved the way he played the game. He was an accurate finisher with good positional sense and good close control.
“He was a model of consistency in my eyes and I dreamt that one day I would play for my team and emulate the success he had.
“I signed schoolboy forms for Middlesbrough at the age of 15 and became professional at the age of 17.
“During my time at the club they had World-class players like Ravanelli and Juninho.”
Campbell was also at Middlesbrough with Bryan Robson, Jan Aage Fjortoft and Paul Gascoigne plus Graham Kavanagh, Des Hamilton and Paul Brayson who all went on to play for the Bluebirds.
“It was a dream come true playing for Middlesbrough,” he said. “It doesn’t get much better than that as a 16-year-old who has just left school. It was the best thing in the world.”
The pacy striker joined Cardiff on loan in 2002, scoring seven goals in 10 matches, and then made the move from ‘Boro permanent for the following season.
“The fans were great, the players were excellent and I just seemed to hit the ground running, really,” he says.
“I signed for City when [former Boro manager] Lennie Lawrence was manager. He’d just taken over at the club and I knew him from my Middlesbrough days.
“It was great, from the minute that I walked through the door everyone was welcoming.”
Campbell’s magic moment came during extra time in the play-off final when he lobbed goalkeeper Chris Day and sent just about every football fan in Cardiff delirious with joy.
He almost missed the final after having surgery on a hernia problem and said: “Building up to the final was frustrating.
“In the days before the game I had been having problems with my hernia and in order to play some part in the final I decided to have an operation which I hoped would help me be fit in time.
“It was touch and go up until kick-off, but thankfully I was ok to play. Just to be involved in a game as big as that was amazing.
“Lennie knew how important the game was and before putting me on he told me to just do my thing and to go and get a goal.
“On a big stage like that in front of over 65,000 people I didn’t need to be told twice.
“When the ball went into the net I ran over to me family. Scoring that goal was without a doubt my proudest moment in a City shirt.
“I always wanted to score in Wembley, which I didn’t get the chance to do, but to score like that in Cardiff for me was far better.”
When Campbell, whose daughter Kennedy was born in South Wales, retired from playing he studied at Teesside University, gaining a degree in fitness instruction and sports massage, while he is now working as a teacher and became a match day host at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium.
Playing for Cardiff, says Campbell, was a ‘life-changing experience and he says: “Clearly, I have good memories from my time at Cardiff and I want them to succeed. I would love to see both ‘Boro and the Bluebirds back in the Premier League.”