When Sigurdur Eyjolfsson lit up Bescot’s promotion party
“It was the most memorable goal I ever scored. I didn’t realise at the time but it was one of the highlights of Walsall’s long history.”
Siggi Eyjolffson only scored three times for Walsall, but as he rightfully points out, his decisive finish against Oldham Athletic 25 years ago remains one of the most celebrated in the club’s history.
The reason being was that it sealed promotion to the First Division with more than 9,000 jubilant supporters packed into Bescot to witness that momentous occasion.
“I didn’t realise how passionate people were about the game of football until I came to Walsall,” the former Icelandic striker admits.
“People would even stop me in the supermarket because I lived in Walsall and they would be talking to me about football.
“They would know so much about the team because it’s a big part of their lives so I had such great respect for the fans.”
Darren Wrack’s solitary strike in a 1-0 win at Lincoln City had propelled the Saddlers to within one win of automatic promotion with three games remaining.
Ray Graydon had defied the odds during his debut campaign in the dugout, toppling the league’s juggernauts Manchester City and Preston North End to land the final automatic promotion spot behind champions Fulham.
“We had that belief. We took everything we had learned under Chris Nicholl and Jan Sorensen and that paved the way for our success under Ray Graydon,” Walsall’s all-time record appearance holder Jimmy Walker notes.
