Wednesday, September 14, 1983

Watford made their debut in European competition in the first round first leg of the UEFA Cup at the Stadion Betzenberg against West German side 1.F.C.Kaiserslautern.

The home side, boasting international Hans-Peter Briegel and future World Cup winner Andreas Breheme, won the game 3-1 but teenage striker Jimmy Gilligan's goal from Nigel Callaghan's cross, the Hornets' first in Europe, ultimately proved critical in securing passage to the second round.

Reproduced by kind permission of Matt Rowson from his book,Watford FC On This Day