39 Facts About Andy Goram

Andrew Lewis Goram was a Scottish footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

Andy Goram appeared in 43 international matches for Scotland and was selected for their squads at the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, UEFA Euro 1992 and UEFA Euro 1996.

Andy Goram represented Scotland at cricket, and was one of only four men to play internationally for Scotland in both football and cricket.

Andy Goram began his career at West Bromwich Albion but was released as a teenager.

Andy Goram then joined Oldham Athletic in 1981 and spent nearly seven years with the club, making 195 Football League appearances.

Andy Goram's father had briefly been a goalkeeper with the Edinburgh club.

Andy Goram served as club captain for the majority of his stay in the capital, and in 1988 achieved the unusual feat of scoring a goal in a Premier Division match, against Morton, with a long kick.

Andy Goram soon settled at Ibrox and established himself by playing in all 55 of Rangers competitive games and keeping 26 clean sheets during his first season there.

Andy Goram played in all ten of their European fixtures that season, conceding seven goals.

Andy Goram won both the Scottish Football Writers and Scottish Professional Footballers Association player of the year awards.

Andy Goram underwent knee surgery in the summer of 1993 and missed most of the following season whilst recovering, making ten appearances.

Andy Goram had brief spells at Notts County and Sheffield United before signing for Motherwell in January 1999.

In July 2002, Andy Goram signed for Queen of the South, with whom he won the Scottish Challenge Cup.

In 2010, Andy Goram was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.

Andy Goram made his debut in that game on 16 October 1985, coming on in the second half as a substitute for Jim Leighton.

Andy Goram travelled to Mexico in the summer of 1986 as a member of Scotland's World Cup squad, although he was third choice behind Leighton and Alan Rough and did not play in any of Scotland's three games.

Andy Goram did play in several friendly matches, and was in the Scotland squad that took part in the 1990 World Cup in Italy, although he did not actually play in games there.

Andy Goram played in all eight of Scotland's qualifying ties for Euro 1992, helping them qualify for the finals of the tournament held in Sweden.

Andy Goram kept his place in the side and played in Scotland's next three qualifying ties; however, in August 1995, days before a qualifying match against Greece, Andy Goram withdrew from the squad stating that he was not "mentally attuned" to play.

Jim Leighton played against Greece and kept his place in the team for the remaining two qualifying matches, although Andy Goram did play for the last 17 minutes of a friendly match against Sweden in between those final two ties.

Andy Goram had a long-running rivalry with Leighton for the goalkeeping position in the Scotland team.

Brown then selected Leighton for France 98 which prompted Andy Goram to walk out of the squad completely, fifteen days before Scotland were scheduled to play Brazil in the opening game of the tournament.

Andy Goram worked as a goalkeeping coach with various clubs after retiring from playing.

Andy Goram took on part-time coaching duties when he returned to Motherwell in 2002.

Andy Goram later coached at Dundee in 2005, Airdrie United in March 2006 and then Clyde in February 2008.

In January 2012, Andy Goram helped Hamilton Academical with their goalkeeping coach crisis.

Andy Goram returned to professional football in January 2015, when he was appointed goalkeeping coach at Dunfermline Athletic, until May 2015 when he left the position.

Andy Goram later had a spell at Airdrieonians as goalkeeping coach from May 2016 until October 2016, leaving the club following a spate of managerial and coaching changes.

Andy Goram played for Penicuik, Kelso, West Lothian and Uddingston in Scottish cricket leagues.

Andy Goram represented Scotland four times: twice in the annual first-class game against Ireland and twice in the NatWest Trophy.

Andy Goram made a cricketing comeback after ending his football career, finally playing for Freuchie Cricket Club in their centenary week matches versus Cricket Scotland President's XI, Falkland Cricket Club and Sussex Ladies.

In May 2016, Andy Goram played for a Scotland over-50s team against Lancashire over-50s.

Andy Goram was born on 13 April 1964 and raised in England, although he was brought up self-identifying as Scottish.

Andy Goram was the son of Edinburgh-born Lewis Goram, who had played professionally in goal in the 1940s and 1950s for Leith Athletic, Hibernian, Third Lanark and Bury.

Andy Goram was accused in the late 1990s of having sympathies with Ulster loyalists during his regular visits to Belfast.

Andy Goram denied the accusations, said that he supported the Northern Ireland peace process and threatened to sue his accusers.

Andy Goram was accused of associations with the loyalist Billy Wright and of wearing a black armband whilst playing against Celtic four days after Wrights' murder; he said that the armband was in memory of an aunt who died four months earlier.

In September 2007, Andy Goram was assaulted at a fundraising dinner by a man who accused him of sectarianism; he condemned sectarianism and said he was "sick of being called a bigot for no reason".

On 30 May 2022, it was announced that Andy Goram had been diagnosed with terminal oesophageal cancer and had been told he had six months to live.