The miracle of Mechelen

By Berend Scholten

On 11 May 1988 in Strasbourg, Dutch striker Piet den Boer headed Israeli international Eli Ohana's left-wing cross past goalkeeper Stanley Menzo to score the only goal of the UEFA European Cup Winners' Cup final, and give Belgian minnows KV Mechelen victory over Dutch giants AFC Ajax.

Magnificent conclusion
For the 10,000 fans who followed Mechelen to France, it was a magnificent conclusion to an improbable first European campaign which had seen the red-and-yellow striped side overcome FC Dinamo Bucuresti, Saint Mirren FC, FC Dinamo Minsk and Atalanta BC on the way to the final.

Miracle campaign
It had the look of a miracle about it. After all, Mechelen had led a fairly anonymous existence since winning a trio of Belgian titles in the 1940s. However, the reality was that it was the culmination of an enormous amount of hard work instigated by the club's main sponsor, John Cordier.

Significant backing
Having made his money through his electronics company Telindus, Cordier took over as Mechelen president in the 1982/83 season. He took it upon himself to modernise the team's Achter de Kazerne stadium and to put the club on a more professional footing.

Coaching coup
His project soon bore fruit as the then second division side won promotion to the Belgian top flight, and with the appointment of Dutch coach Aad de Mos in 1986 Mechelen pulled off a notable coup in ensuring the continued development of the club on the pitch.

Dynamic combination
De Mos's side mixed Belgian diligence in the form of Michel Preud'homme and Lei Clijsters with Dutch daring from the likes of Erwin Koeman, Den Boer and Graeme Rutjes, and were a team with the strength to threaten RSC Anderlecht's dominance of Belgian football. "When Aad joined KV in 1986, only Lei Clijsters was an international," Cordier remembered some years later. "By the time he left in 1989, the whole team were internationals."

'Unforgettable time'
Team captain Clijsters, father of Belgian tennis star Kim Clijsters, added: "It was an unforgettable time with unforgettable games, that unfortunately could never happen again. The axis of Preud'homme-Clijsters-Rutjes-Koeman-Den Boer was not very expensive then. These days you couldn't put such a team together."

Second place
Mechelen showed their new-found strength by finishing second in the Belgian table in 1986/87 and winning the Belgian Cup, as Piet den Boer's goal secured a 1-0 win over RC Liégeois. That success opened the door to Cup Winners' Cup success the following year.

Belgian title
That same season saw Mechelen finish as league runners-up again, and it was not until 1988/89 with a side that included John Bosman from Ajax, that De Mos's men finally claimed the Belgian title to add to the UEFA Super Cup they won by beating European Champion Clubs' Cup winners PSV Eindhoven over two legs in February 1989.

Decline and fall
However, Mechelen's fall was to be almost as rapid as their rise. De Mos left for Anderlecht in 1989, and before long Telindus was in financial trouble with Cordier forced to sell Mechelen's best players in an attempt to save his ailing company. Cordier left the club in 1992, prompting years of struggle before Mechelen filed for bankruptcy in early 2003.

Subdued centenary
The club celebrated their centenary in October 2004 while playing in Belgium's third division A. Cordier missed the celebrations, having died at the age of 60 on 22 January 2002. He may have passed away, but the memories of the great team he helped to create live on.