April 15, 1967: Scotland's 2nd Wembley Wizards

April 15, 1967: A soccer shocker at Wembley Stadium in London. England, holders of the World Cup, and using the exact same lineup as in the Final except for Jimmy Greaves at Number 8 instead of Roger Hunt, are beaten 3-2 by Scotland in a qualifier for Euro 1968.

The Scotland team did not include the injured Jimmy "Jinky" Johnstone, later voted the greatest-ever player for Glasgow's Celtic Football Club, about to help them become the 1st British team to win the European Cup. It did include a Celtic player named William Wallace -- although this one wasn't nicknamed "Braveheart." Ronnie Simpson, Tommy Gemmell and Bobby Lennox also came from the "Lisbon Lions" to play for this Scotland team.

Also playing were John Greig, captain of this team and of Rangers, Celtic's arch-rivals, voted by their fans their greatest player ever; Denis Law of Manchester United, about to win England's League, and who famously hated England so much that he played golf rather than watch the 1966 World Cup Final; and Billy Bremner of Leeds United. Law, Lennox and Jim McCalliog of Sheffield Wednesday scored Scotland's goals.

Denis Law

Like the 1928 Scotland team that became the 1st "foreign" team to beat England at their national stadium, these Scots became known as the Wembley Wizards, and Scottish fans said that they were now "Champions of the World." As that 1928 game has faded from memory, while the 1967 match was broadcast on television and captured on "colour" film, it remains in Great Britain's collective consciousness, and thus stands as Scotland's greatest sporting achievement.

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April 15, 1967 was a Saturday. U.S. Olympic swimmer Dara Torres was born. This was also a day when the biggest protests yet against the Vietnam War were held: 125,000 people in New York, hearing speeches, by, among others, Dr. Martin Luther King; and another 50,000 in San Francisco.

These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox, 1-0 at Yankee Stadium. Mel Stottlemyre pitched a 4-hit shutout, to outpitch Dennis Bennett. The only run came in the bottom of the 5th, when Horace Clarke singled Ray Barker home. Mickey Mantle did not play.

This result was an anomaly: The Red Sox went on to win their "Impossible Dream" Pennant, while the Yankees, old and broken down, finished 9th in the 10-team single-division American League.

* The New York Mets lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-2 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Jim Bunning outpitched Bob Shaw. Tony González went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and 5 RBIs.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants, 4-3 at Atlanta Stadium (later renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium). Joe Torre went 2-for-4 with a home run and 3 RBIs. Hank Aaron went 0-for-4. Willie Mays appeared as a pinch-hitter, and singled home a run. Willie McCovey went 0-for-4.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 7-3 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Ernie Banks went 1-for-5. Roberto Clemente went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Willie Stargell went 0-for-4.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 7-3 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Deron Johnson hit 2 home runs, while Pete Rose and Tommy Harper each added 1.

* The Washington Senators beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Ken McMullen doubled 2 runs home in the top of the 11th inning.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 4-3 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Al Kaline and Bill Freehan hit home runs for the Tigers, while Harmon Killebrew went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 13-4 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Al Jackson outpitched Don Sutton. Lou Brock went 4-for-6 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs. Orlando Cepeda and Tim McCarver also each had 3 hits.

* The Kansas City Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles, 11-3 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. Jim "Catfish" Hunter went the distance for the win, while Wally Bunker didn't get out of the 4th inning. Roger Repoz hit a home run, while Danny Cater went 4-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson each went 2-for-4, with Brooks also having an RBI.

* And the Cleveland Indians beat the California Angels, 4-1 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Fred Whitfield hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.

American-style football was out of season. The NBA Finals were between Games 1 and 2. The Philadelphia 76ers would beat the San Francisco Warriors in 6 games.

There was 1 game played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 4-2 at the Chicago Stadium. The Leafs went on to beat the Montreal Canadiens to win the Cup.