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Comment by jonplackett | Hacker News Reader

I still remember the pain of this (and many other england) shoot outs.

Apparently it was team policy back then not to practice penalties. No wonder we always lost.

It wasn't until Gareth Southgate took over as england manager (who infamously had his terrible semi final penalty saved in Euro 96) that we started practicing - and guess what, we won the next penalty shoot out. Who'd have thought?

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Good grief that is bonkers. I wonder if it was justified like - if you prepare for penalties the players will aim for that instead of trying to win in 90 minutes or in Extra Time. Like an old antiquated training strategy I read about where a team would train without a ball, so that they’d be more hungry for it during the game.

I cannot imagine what it feels like to be an England fan. With Scotland it’d be an achievement if we even reached a major finals, and we’re kinda prepared for disappointment in every game. But England are a genuinely good team who are capable of winning the Euros or the World Cup if they don’t bottle it.

The sad thing about being an England fan over the last few decades has been managers pandering to the egos rather than playing the best strategy. Can never forgive the run of managers who decided playing Gerrard and Lampard next to each other every match was a great idea.

Southgate in that regard does feel like a small breath of fresh air.

Considering Southgate single-footedly ruined the year 1996 for me, it is not without difficulty that I agree.

The last world cup was a lot of fun to watch. Him winning England's first penalty shootout (I think ever?) felt like the circle of life completing.

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