“Ladies and gentlemen. We have a celebrity with us tonight. His name is Don Masson and he missed a penalty against Peru in the World Cup.”
That was how Don Masson was introduced at a quiz night when he returned to Banchory to visit relatives 20 years after breaking the hearts of a nation in 1978.
Some people have long memories.
Masson’s penalty miss against Peru in the 1978 World Cup was the stuff of nightmares.
He never played for his country again.
Masson dreamed of playing for Aberdeen
Masson became captain of Banchory Academy’s under-12 side and also represented Kincardineshire after growing up kicking a tennis ball up against a wall.
His father used to take him to Pittodrie to watch Aberdeen play and his idols at that time were league-winning heroes Paddy Buckley and Graham Leggat.
Masson moved to Middlesbrough when he was 12.
Middlesbrough signed him after he impressed for the school team and he made his debut in 1964 at the age of 18 against Charlton.
Masson joined Notts County in 1968 where he made history with the Magpies as the first player ever to captain the same club to three promotions.
He joined QPR in 1974 and was part of the Loftus Road side that almost won the league in 1976 before being sold to Derby in 1977 in a straight swop for Leighton James.
Masson became the toast of Scotland in 1977 when he scored a penalty during the 2-0 victory over Wales at Anfield by which they qualified for the 1978 World Cup.
Ally MacLeod’s Tartan Army embarked on their ill-fated foray to Argentina eight months later following a rousing open-top bus send-off at Hampden Park.
It was a victory parade – with admission at 50p a seat and 30p on the terraces – before a ball had been kicked as the nation lost its grip on reality and succumbed to the hype.
Winning the World Cup was ‘unrealistic’
Masson broke it down further in his 2020 autobiography.
He said: “Ally had to take much of the blame for setting the bar so high.
“He kept telling anyone who would listen that we were off to win the World Cup but you never heard a single player suggest that.
“It was ridiculous. No European country had ever won it in South America and although we were confident of giving a good account of ourselves, it was unrealistic to think we could do more.
“I’m very reluctant to criticise Ally. I liked him.
“He was always totally fair with me although I have to admit that nine years spent learning his trade as manager of Ayr United hardly qualified him for the huge task he was facing.
“What I really wanted from him at that moment in time was evidence he’d used the previous eight months wisely. I desperately hoped he’d been plotting and planning, putting the building blocks in place to give us the best possible chance.”
The squad were staying in the Sierras Hotel before the first group match against Peru where there was no carpeting in the players’ rooms and no water in the swimming pool.
MacLeod’s men started their campaign with Masson alongside Bruce Rioch and Asa Hartford in what had been a tried and trusted midfield through qualifying.
Was MacLeod guilty of being too loyal?
“I didn’t expect to be picked for our opening game against Peru, nor did Bruce, but Ally was incredibly loyal to us. There was certainly logic behind the decision because we knew that if we performed to our capabilities we were well worth our places.
“He was, though, taking a big gamble.
“I was very grateful to the manager and whatever problems I might have had, I was determined to put those aside and do everything in my power to justify his faith.”
Scotland totally underestimated Peru.
Little wonder given MacLeod turned down the chance to watch them.
“They were skilful, with bags of energy and ideas, and what quickly became apparent was that they’d done their homework on us,” said Masson.
“Shame we couldn’t say the same. In the end, that was to cost us very dearly.
“Ally had come in for a lot of criticism from the Scottish media because he’d spurned the chance to watch Peru in action against Argentina a few weeks earlier. He said he’d had a prior engagement.
“That was unforgivable before a match of such importance.”
Things started well when Joe Jordan put Scotland ahead after 14 minutes before Cesar Cueto equalised just before half-time for Peru.
A foul on Bruce Rioch in the box gave Scotland a penalty on 60 minutes.
Masson took the spot kick but Peru goalkeeper Ramon Quiroga, who was aptly nicknamed El Loco, made a comfortable save to his right.
Masson and Rioch were replaced by Archie Gemmill and Lou Macari.
Teofilo Cubillas was outstanding and scored twice to give Peru a 3–1 win.
In his 2020 memoir, Still Saying Sorry, Masson said that “from that day to this” he has blamed himself for the calamity in Cordoba which ended his Scotland career.
So what was he thinking when he stepped up to take the penalty?
He said: “I quickly made up my mind to repeat what I did against Wales.
“It had worked perfectly that night. Why shouldn’t it do so again?
“I checked my run, as usual, and fired it towards the goalkeeper’s right.
“But by the time the ball reached him he was already in position, waiting for it to arrive.
“They’d done their homework.
“I was devastated. It ripped me apart and when Ally sent on Archie Gemmill and Lou Macari after 70 minutes, to replace Bruce and me, it was actually a relief. The game was still poised at 1-1 when I came off but I just knew that I’d done untold damage.”
Drug test woes were final straw
Things got even worse after the final whistle when Masson’s room-mate Willie Johnston was sent home in disgrace after he tested positive for a banned stimulant.
It was the final straw for Masson who couldn’t take much more.
He said: “I was inconsolable about missing the penalty and letting the lads down, and now my mate had been sent home in shame.
“I didn’t sleep a wink and it was the longest night I’d ever known. I felt there was only one course of action and first thing in the morning, I went to see Ally.
“I begged him to let me go home.
“I knew that with the state I was in he couldn’t possibly use me again and having me hanging around would do nothing to improve the morale of the others.”
MacLeod said Masson had nothing to feel ashamed about and although he wouldn’t let him go home he told him: “I won’t put you through any more.”
By the time of the next fixture, against supposed whipping boys of the group Iran, the dream had become a nightmare.
A dismal 1-1 draw left Scotland clutching at straws just to stay in the tournament.
And despite Archie Gemmill’s wonder goal against Holland, the 3-2 win against the 1974 runners-up wasn’t enough and the team were heading home.
Masson took aim at the SFA in a critical newspaper article when he returned home from Argentina and was banned for life from playing for Scotland.
MacLeod resigned from the Scotland job after one more game in charge.
Masson returned to Meadow Lane with Notts County following the World Cup before playing for a time in Hong Kong and in America with the Minnesota Kicks.
He ended his career as the player-manager of Kettering Town in the early 1980s before walking away from the game and he now runs a boutique B&B with his wife.
Now aged 76, Masson still thinks about what happened in Cordoba and admits it’s a piece of heavy baggage he’s destined to carry with him to the grave.
“In fairness, I do think that maybe it has reached the stage where it’s possibly more to do with me failing to let it go than what other people are thinking,” he said.
He’s right.
After 44 years he should let it go.
Still Saying Sorry by Don Masson is on sale now.
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