Republic of Ireland 1 England 1
Five of the six games played in this group finished in draws. Ireland’s kit was a subtle evolution on their Euro 88 shirt with the addition of tonal chevrons in the fabric, an effect repeated on the goalkeeper’s shirt – Packie Bonner’s kit had the adidas striping in three different colours due to the mismatching socks.
Along with fellow Umbro side Scotland, England were the only country at the World Cup to have a crest on their shorts, while they had a ‘Fifa World Cup Italy ’90’ inscription on their shirts too.
Netherlands 1 Egypt 1
Our best guess for both countries being in their away kits is that Fifa wouldn’t allow the green Egypt change shirt to be worn against orange, as would be the case for the Netherlands’ game with Ireland.
Egypt’s shirts were the same as Cameroon’s home but in a different shade of green, while goalkeeper Ahmed Shoubeir had a shirt like one of those worn by Colombia’s René Higiuita – but with the pattern facing the opposite way vertically.
England 0 Netherlands 0
England would be able to wear their home kit for every game, while goalkeeper Peter Shilton didn’t have to change either.
His opposite number Hans van Breukelen had two versions of the same design, one not worn by any other keeper. He was also the only goalkeeper at the tournament to wear white shorts.
But for the black adidas trefoil on the shorts, the Dutch kit would have been a full reversal of the change strip.
Egypt 0 Republic of Ireland 0
A game which has gone down in infamy in Ireland for its lack of quality, as well as starting a rift between manager Jack Charlton and TV analyst Eamon Dunphy.
As on their change kit, Egypt’s home shorts were white, but with red accents. Ireland’s kit kept the same neck as the home version but swapped green and white everywhere else.
England 1 Egypt 0
Mark Wright’s goal ensured England topped the group and eliminated Egypt.
Netherlands 1 Republic of Ireland 1
Both sets of outfielders had their shorts numbers on the right leg, while Hans van Breukelen and Packie Bonner had theirs on the left.
Ruud Gullit put Holland ahead and then Niall Quinn equalised, with the rest of the game played out in a gentle, unthreatening fashion as both teams knew the result would send them through.
With indentical records, lots were drawn to determine second and third place – Ireland won out, meaning they faced Romania in the last 16 while the Netherlands would have to face West Germany.
