The day Shaun Goater secured legendary status at Man City in derby win
Shaun Goater was never supposed to be a Premier League striker; his technique was less than perfect and he rarely did anything outside of the 18-yard box but he was rightly a Manchester City hero.
The Bermudan's goals had led City back to the top-flight for their final season at Maine Road, but Goater was still rarely a favourite with manager Kevin Keegan and the arrival of record-signing Nicolas Anelka looked like it might force Goater out of the club.
Alongside Anelka, a man made for playing football and scoring goals thanks to his electric pace and coolness when presented with a chance, Goater could have looked out of place. Due to a work ethic and determination to prove doubters wrong, Goater was equally important as the former Real Madrid and Arsenal man.
The two lined up alongside each other for the last Manchester derby to be played in Moss Side as underdogs against Sir Alex Ferguson's array of star names. City were patched up in defence, as Keegan was forced to utilise Richard Dunne, Gerard Wiekens, Lucien Mettomo and Sun Jihai as a makeshift back four, tasked with protecting United legend Peter Schmeichel who had moved to City in the summer.
Maine Road was famed for its atmosphere, as fans got behind a team that had deprived them of success for years, prior to their investment in the latter part of the decade. United were not a team to freeze but City were presented with a number of errors on the day as the visitors suffered from the pressure in the cauldron.
Anelka robbed Rio Ferdinand - the world's most expensive defender at the time - of the ball in the fifth minute before feeding Goater who took a weak left-footed shot from inside the area, which Fabian Barthez could only parry despite the lack of speed on the ball, with the rebound being gladly met by his compatriot Anelka who tapped home, making the home fans euphoric.
United equalised soon after through Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, which was a potential turning point in a frenetic fixture. Despite the goal, the atmosphere was not dampened and a flourishing City came back at an unsettled United.
Gary Neville, probably the player most hated by City fans at the time, was well known for being calm on the pitch and rarely made a mistake, but he was to become the latest victim of error bug going round.
When Marc-Vivien Foe sent an aimless pass towards the United byline, Neville rushed over to remove any threat of danger. Sadly for Neville his attempts to see the ball out of play resulted him in being hounded by Goater. Neville hesitated and tried to pass the ball back to Barthez, allowing the former Bristol City forward to take control of the ball and curling it beyond the United goalkeeper for his 99th goal in a City shirt.
City were on the front foot and there would be no stopping them on this Saturday lunchtime in November as they continued the charge, Goater followed his 99th goal with his 100th in the second-half, as he latched onto a cunning Eyal Berkovic pass, allowing him to dink the ball over Barthez in a manner no one would expect from the functional striker. It was one of the moments that cemented his place as a hero at City as he left the following summer.
Money can buy City success but in a time before excessive finance, this win over United was one that supporters will hold dear in another era before the golden age they've seen and created an eternal hero.