Whether it’s epic comebacks, five goal thrillers or a shock giant killing, the FA Cup final has certainly dished-up its fair share of drama down the years. So here are just some of those that still live on in the memory and have helped make this tournament the greatest domestic knockout competition in the world.
Everton 3 Sheffield Wednesday 2, 1966
Sometimes referred to as the forgotten final of 1966 the Blues, under manager Harry Catterick, were odds-on to lift the FA Cup against Second Division Sheffield Wednesday some two months before Bobby Moore climbed the famous 39 steps to lift the Jules Rimet trophy for England.
To everyone’s surprise, however, the Owls took the lead in the fourth minute, before doubling their advantage with half an hour remaining, only for a dramatic 15-minute turnaround as Everton put three past the Wednesday thanks to goals from Mike Trebilcock and Derek Temple to claim the trophy.
Leeds United 0 Sunderland 1, 1973
Under the great Don Revie Leeds United were one of the most feared sides in Europe in the early 1970s, so when they faced Bob Stokoe’s Second Division Sunderland at Wembley few gave the Black Cats a chance.
However, an Ian Porterfield goal after 31 minutes gave the Rokerites the lead which they managed to hang on to for the remainder of the game, thanks in no small part to their ‘keeper Jim Montgomerie, whose double save in the second half is still one of the most talked about moments in cup final history.
Manchester United 2 Arsenal 3, 1979
Known as the four-minute final the 1979 FA Cup final was one of the most dramatic in the competition’s history but only really for the last few moments of what was, for the majority, a rather dull affair. Brian Talbot gave Arsenal a 12th-minute lead before future United star, Frank Stapleton, added a second just before half time as Arsenal looked to be cruising.
But when Gordon McQueen pulled one back with four minutes remaining things quickly changed and as Sammy McIlroy equalised on 88 minutes extra-time looked to be a certainty; only for Alan Sunderland to write his name into FA Cup folklore when he scored the Arsenal winner in the dying seconds of the game.
Tottenham 3 Manchester City 2, 1981
After a 1-1 draw on the Saturday Manchester City and Spurs would do it all again the following Thursday and contrary to the general rule when it came to FA Cup final replays the second game was more exciting than the first with this five goal thriller as Spurs took the lead through Ricky Villa in the opening ten minutes before Steve Mackenzie equalised almost immediately.
The second half started just as frantically, with Kevin Reeves putting City ahead only for Garth Crooks to level with just 20 minutes left on the clock. But it would be Villa who made the difference as he dribbled past four City defenders and calmly slotted the ball past Corrigan to seal an incredible victory with an iconic goal.
Coventry City 3 Tottenham 2, 1987
Coventry City had reached the club’s very first FA Cup final in 1987 while Spurs, boasting the likes of Glenn Hoddle, Chris Waddle and Ossie Ardiles, had finished third in the First Division and were strong favourites to lift the trophy for a record eighth time; so when Clive Allen scored his 49th goal of the season after just two minutes all appeared to be going to form.
But the Sky Blues equalised just seven minutes later with Spurs taking the lead again just before half time to restore what many thought would be the order of the day. However, Dave Bennett tied things up once more at 2-2 before an unfortunate Gary Mabbut own goal late in the game ultimately secured one of the biggest shocks in years as City won the cup for the first time in their history.
Liverpool 3 Everton 2, 1989
Taking place only a few weeks after the Hillsborough disaster, which claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool supporters in the semi-final against Nottingham Forest, the atmosphere for this all Merseyside affair was understandably subdued; but on the pitch the two sides served-up one of the greatest finals of the decade.
John Aldridge put Liverpool ahead in the fourth minute, a lead which they would hold on to until the 89th minute when Everton equalised through Stuart McCall. Ian Rush put the Reds ahead again in extra-time, only for McCall to pull the Blues level once more, before John Barnes’ cross was met by the Rush to win the game for Liverpool with just minutes remaining.
Manchester United 3 Crystal Palace 3, 1990
Alex Ferguson was a man under pressure going into United’s first FA Cup final in five years and a surprise looked a real possibility when Gary O’Reilly headed the Eagles ahead before Bryan Robson and Mark Hughes eventually put the Red Devils in front.
However, second-half substitute Ian Wright turned the match on its head as he drew Palace level late in the game to send the tie to extra-time before giving his side the lead; but Hughes levelled with just seven minutes remaining to send the match to a replay which United won 1-0.
Liverpool 3 West Ham United 3 (Liverpool won 3-1 on penalties), 2006
FA Cup final classics haven’t always been confined to the capital as the 2006 showpiece at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium proved. A thrilling first half had seen a Jamie Carragher own goal and a strike from Dean Ashton put the Hammers 2-0 up, before Djibril Cisse got one back for Liverpool before the break.
Steven Gerrard pulled the Reds level on 54 minutes, before Paul Konchesky once again maintained West Ham’s advantage, but that wasn’t the end of the scoring as the Anfield skipper’s long-range shot flew into the back of the net in the dying seconds to send the game into extra-time and then a penalty shoot-out; which Liverpool would subsequently win.
