Galloping Major gave us finest hour at Hampden

IN HIS Hungarian homeland which was plunged into mourning by his death yesterday morning, he was known as Ocsi, a term of endearment for a little brother.

Throughout the footballing world, which shares the grief of his loss, he was recognised as "the Galloping Major". In Glasgow, where he enjoyed arguably the finest hour - and a half - of his peerless career, Ferenc Puskas might have been more appropriately labelled the Gallus Major. For whatever the definition of that peculiarly Scottish word is, it certainly applied to the man who was one of the most gifted and prolific forwards his sport has ever seen.

Those who crammed into Hampden for the epoch-making European Cup Final of 1960 bore witness not only to what is widely recognised as the greatest club match of all time, but also a masterclass of technical brilliance and deadly finishing from the then 33-year-old Puskas.

His four goals in Real Madrid's 7-3 defeat of a terrific Eintracht Frankfurt side who had crushed Rangers in the semi-finals of the tournament secured Puskas' place in the hearts of a Scottish footballing public who readily identified with the swaggering style with which he played the game.

For a man whose most famous moniker came as a result of the rank he reached while serving in the Hungarian Army, there was very little that was regimented about Puskas on or off the pitch, as he proved on another successful visit to Glasgow.

In September 1963, Real Madrid were back in town to face Rangers in the first leg of a European Cup first round tie. In front of more than 80,000 supporters at Ibrox, Puskas scored the only goal of the game three minutes from time when he pulled down a cross from flying winger Francisco Gento and hammered home an unstoppable shot.

During the match, Puskas had encountered a kindred spirit in more ways than one in the shape of Rangers' languid but gifted playmaker Jim Baxter. At the post-match banquet held in the city's George Hotel, Puskas managed to communicate to Baxter that he was keen to extend his celebratory night out. He had found a more than willing accomplice and, as Baxter would often recall with a chuckle in later years, one of the world's greatest footballers woke up the next morning after an especially raucous house party in, of all places, Drumchapel.

His encounter with Baxter clearly had no adverse effect on Puskas who scored a hat-trick against Rangers in the second leg of the tie at the Bernabeu Stadium which Real Madrid won 6-0.

If nothing else sets Puskas apart, then his extraordinary goalscoring record at both club and international level surely does. Statistics can sometimes flatter to deceive, but there is no mistaking the significance of his figures. He netted 357 times in 354 games for Honved, before translating that staggering scoring form to his nine years with Real Madrid which saw him claim 512 goals from 528 games. Throw in 83 goals in 84 appearances for his beloved Hungary and you have a scoring ratio at the highest level without equal.

Introduced to football by his father, who was a coach at the Kispest club in Budapest which would later be renamed Honved when it was commandeered by the Hungarian Ministry of Defence, Puskas made his first team debut at the age of 16. He won five Hungarian League titles with Honved, with the 50 goals he scored in season 1947-48 alone making him the leading marksman in any championship in Europe and seeing his reputation begin to spread beyond his own borders.

Puskas was just 18 when handed his senior debut for Hungary, marking the occasion with a goal in a 5-2 defeat of Austria in Budapest. Along with Honved team-mates such as Jozsef Bozsik, Zoltan Czibor and Sandor Kocsis, he formed the core of a sublimely talented side which became known as the Mighty Magyars.

During a world record run of 32 unbeaten matches, Hungary were crowned Olympic champions in 1952 and then the following year famously became the first overseas team to beat England at Wembley when they dazzled beneath the twin towers in a 6-3 victory.

Hungary had been expected to confirm their status as the finest team on the planet by winning the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland but suffered a shock 3-2 loss to West Germany in the final. Puskas was handicapped by injury during the tournament, but had scored in an 8-3 defeat of the Germans during the group phase which suggested Hungary would ease their way to a keenly anticipated coronation.

Puskas, subsequently left out of the side until the final, duly opened the scoring after six minutes but West Germany fought back from 2-0 down to go ahead with only six minutes of the match in Berne remaining. With two minutes left, Puskas had a goal controversially disallowed which, to this day, is contested in Hungary.

Two years later, the Hungarian people had more serious matters to contend with as revolution broke out in Budapest and beyond. In November 1956, when Russian Army tanks rumbled into the Hungarian capital to crush the outbreak, Puskas and his Honved team-mates were in Spain playing Athletic Bilbao in the European Cup.

Because of the trouble, Honved decided against returning home and played the second leg in Brussels where Puskas scored the first of 36 goals he would claim in 41 European Cup appearances. Honved lost 6-5 on aggregate, however, and while some of their players decided to return to Hungary, Puskas refused.

He travelled to Spain, and also spent time in Italy where AC Milan and Juventus both made overtures to sign him. In response to a protest from the Hungarian FA, however, Puskas was banned from football for two years by UEFA.

Afterwards, he resumed his career with Real Madrid and made a seamless return to form. In his first season in La Liga, he bagged four hat-tricks as he formed a deadly partnership with the magnificent Alfredo Di Stefano. Puskas went on to collect five Spanish championship medals at the Bernabeu.

Appropriately enough, his last appearance in the European Cup came on Scottish soil in November 1965 when he was part of the Real side which drew 2-2 with Kilmarnock at Rugby Park.

Puskas moved into management, coaching clubs from Spain to Australia. He made his mark in the European Cup once more, guiding Panathinaikos to the 1971 final which they lost 2-0 to Ajax at Wembley, but as a player his legacy will last as long as the game itself.

Fittingly, the Nep Stadium in Budapest where he produced many of his finest displays was renamed in his honour four years ago, Puskas having returned to his home city for his final years. Ocsi passed away among his own people at the age of 79. From Madrid to Mount Florida, their sense of pain is felt by football lovers everywhere.

Taken from the Scotsman