Stein's assistant Alex Ferguson took the role of manager on a part-time caretaker basis, as he was still managing his successful Aberdeen side. Scotland won the qualifying play-off against Australia 2–0 on aggregate, but they went out of the World Cup with just one point from their three matches, as the team lost to Denmark and West Germany. The final match against Uruguay ended in a goalless draw, despite the Uruguayans having a player sent off in the opening minutes. The SFA chief executive Ernie Walker memorably described the Uruguayans as "animals". Ferguson relinquished the Scotland job after the World Cup and moved on to Manchester United a few months later.