1926 FA Cup final
Event | 1925–26 FA Cup | ||||||
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Date | 24 April 1926 | ||||||
Venue | Wembley Stadium, London | ||||||
Referee | I. Baker | ||||||
Attendance | 91,447 | ||||||
The 1926 FA Cup final was a football match between Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City on 24 April 1926 at Wembley Stadium in London. The showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (better known as the FA Cup), it was the 55th final, and the fourth at Wembley.
Each team progressed through five rounds to reach the final. Both teams were members of the
Route to the final
Bolton Wanderers
Round | Opposition | Score |
---|---|---|
3rd | Accrington Stanley (h) | 1–0 |
4th | Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic (a)
|
2–2 |
Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic (h) | 6–2 | |
5th | South Shields (h)
|
3–0 |
6th | Nottingham Forest (a) | 2–2 |
Nottingham Forest (h) | 0–0 | |
Nottingham Forest (n) | 1–0 | |
Semi-final | Swansea Town (n )
|
3–0 |
Both teams entered the competition in the third round, the entry point for First Division clubs. Bolton Wanderers were drawn away at
Bolton's fifth round home tie against
Manchester City
Round | Opposition | Score |
---|---|---|
3rd | Corinthians (a) | 3–3 |
Corinthians (h) | 4–0 | |
4th | Huddersfield Town (h)
|
4–0 |
5th | Crystal Palace (h) | 11–4 |
6th | Clapton Orient (h) | 6–1 |
Semi-final | Manchester United (n) | 3–0 |
Manchester City's third round tie was against the amateur club
Manchester City were drawn at home to Crystal Palace in the fifth round. A final score of 11–4 set a club record for the number of goals in a game and was City's biggest margin of victory since 1903. Frank Roberts scored five and Tommy Browell also scored a hat-trick.[4] Yet another high scoring win was achieved in the quarter-final, when Clapton Orient were beaten 6–1. Johnson scored a hat-trick and Hicks scored for the fifth successive cup match.
In the semi-final, Manchester City faced local rivals Manchester United in a derby match at Bramall Lane. Browell scored the opener from a Hicks corner amid vehement protests for handball from the United players.[7][12] Later in the half, United's Frank Barson flattened Sam Cowan with an "ugly challenge" for which he later received a suspension.[7][12] In the second half, Browell and Roberts each scored to make the final score 3–0.[12]
Build-up
Both teams had won the FA Cup on one previous occasion and had met in the
Of the two teams, Bolton Wanderers had the better league form. After rising as high as fourth early in the league season,[14] Bolton spent the majority of the year in mid-table and finally finished 8th of the 22 First Division clubs with 44 points from their 42 league fixtures.[15] Manchester City remained in the lower reaches of the league table throughout the season and were relegated after finishing 21st with 35 points.[16] Their matches were frequently high scoring. City scored more league goals than second-placed Arsenal, but also had the second-worst defensive record in the division. The two league matches between the teams in the 1925–26 season ended in a 5–1 home win for Bolton in November and a 1–1 draw at Maine Road in March.[17]
In accordance with changes made for the 1924 final onwards, all tickets were sold in advance to prevent a repeat of the overcrowding at the 1923 final. Approximately 91,000 tickets were available. 53,000 were standing tickets, 15,000 were uncovered seats and 23,000 were covered seats. Standing tickets cost two
Manchester City prepared for the match by training in the spa town of Buxton.[24] Bolton Wanderers followed their usual training schedule for most of the week, then travelled to Harrow on the Thursday.[20] All eleven men who played for Bolton in their 1923 triumph were still at the club. Of those, only the injured Alex Finney was absent as they travelled to London.[20] Jack Smith had been injured for several weeks in the run-up to the final, but recovered in time and participated in Bolton's last league match before the tie.[25]
Match
In the hour before kick-off, the crowd was entertained by the bands of the
As anticipated, Bolton fielded ten of the eleven who played the 1923 final. Left-back Harry Greenhalgh was the only change from the 1923 line-up.[13] Each team played the formation typical of the era: two full-backs, three half-backs and five forwards. Bolton had the better of the opening exchanges; the Times correspondent wrote: "In the first five minutes Bolton Wanderers were so superior to their opponents that they might have been giving an exhibition for the cinema against schoolboys".[27] Manchester City then gradually asserted themselves and had the first clear chance. Frank Roberts took a right-footed shot, but hit the ball straight at Bolton goalkeeper Dick Pym.[26] Overall, the defences enjoyed the better of the play in the first half. Bolton's Joe Smith was instrumental in much of his team's attacking play,[22] both he and left-winger Ted Vizard receiving praise for their play.[26]
Hicks, who was generally described as the most effective of the Manchester City forwards, had a chance which he hit high over the crossbar.[22] In a rare spell of sustained Manchester City pressure, a free kick by captain Jimmy McMullan forced a save from Pym, and the resulting near-post corner prompted a goalmouth scramble which ended with a foul on Bolton's Greenhalgh.[22] Pym made further saves from Browell and Hicks, the latter resulting in a corner. From the corner Bolton won the ball and headed upfield on the counter-attack. Billy Butler's cross from the right went beyond the goal and was retrieved by Vizard on the left wing.[22] The outside-forward then cut inside and played the ball across goal in a manner described by some correspondents as a shot and others as a pass.[26][27] David Jack received the ball in the six-yard box and put the ball between Goodchild and McCloy into the City goal,[26] giving Bolton the lead with 14 minutes remaining. In the few minutes after the goal, Manchester City came forward in numbers but lacked clear chances and were hindered by over-eager forwards going offside.[22] Following a goal kick by Pym, the referee blew the final whistle.[22] Bolton won the cup for a second time, becoming the first club to win twice at Wembley.
Post-match
The Bolton team were greeted by crowds at Bolton Town Hall. In a playful exchange, Joe Smith gave the Cup to the mayor, saying that it had been won for Bolton and was given to Bolton, which the mayor refused.[28] Bolton went on to win a third FA Cup in 1929, beating Portsmouth 2–0. The 1929 team contained five of the 1926 cup winners. Goalscorer David Jack was transferred to Arsenal in 1928. The transfer set a world record as the first to exceed £10,000.[29] Jack won one more FA Cup with Arsenal.
Upon arrival back in Manchester, the Manchester City team were given a civic reception at Manchester Town Hall, then immediately travelled to their Maine Road ground to play a league fixture against Leeds.
Match details
Bolton Wanderers | 1–0 | Manchester City |
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Jack 76' |
Report |
Bolton Wanderers
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Manchester City
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MATCH RULES
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References
- Bibliography
- James, Gary (2006). Manchester City – The Complete Record. ISBN 1-85983-512-0.
- Ward, Andrew (1984). The Manchester City Story. ISBN 0-907969-05-4.
- Notes
- ^ "The Association Cup-ties – Manchester Clubs' Hard Games. How Will Lancashire Fare?". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 9 January 1926. p. 10.
- ^ "Few Surprises In The Cup Ties". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 11 January 1926. p. 4.
- ^ "Few Surprising Cup Tie Results". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 1 February 1926. p. 10.
- ^ a b "Second Division Clubs Bid for Cup, Lacrosse Score at Manchester". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 22 February 1926. p. 4.
- ^ "Bolton Reach Semi-Final at Third Attempt". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 16 March 1926. p. 5.
- ^ "To-day's Association Cup Semi-Finals". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 27 March 1926. p. 16.
- ^ a b c "An All-Lancashire Cup Final". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 29 March 1926. p. 4.
- ^ "Association Football. The Corinthians at Brighton". The Times. London: J. J. Astor. 13 January 1923. p. 13.
- ^ a b Ward (1984). p. 63.
- ^ "Five More Cup-ties Decided". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 14 January 1926. p. 5.
- ^ "The Giants Fail in the Cup". The Observer. Manchester: C. P. Scott. 31 January 1926. p. 19.
- ^ Trinity Mirror. pp. 6–7 (supplement).
- ^ a b "A Lancashire Cup Final". The Times. London: J. J. Astor. 24 April 1926. p. 7.
- ^ "English Division One (old) 1925–1926 : Table on 08.09.1925". Statto Organisation. Archived from the original on 9 December 2015. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
- ^ "Bolton Wanderers 1925–1926". Statto Organisation. Archived from the original on 20 May 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
- ^ "Manchester City 1925–1926". Statto Organisation. Archived from the original on 20 May 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
- ^ James (2006) p. 328.
- ^ "The Cup Final: Only Stand Tickets Available, Small Manchester Demand". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 8 April 1926.
- ^ "Our London Correspondence". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 14 April 1926. p. 8.
- ^ a b c "Lancashire's Cup Final at Wembley". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 24 April 1926. p. 1.
- ^ "Cup Final Excursions". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 16 April 1926. p. 6.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "English Cup Final: Not a Great Game, Bolton Wanderers Win". The Scotsman. 26 April 1926. p. 9.
- ^ "Cup-tie Finances". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 28 April 1926. p. 5.
- ^ "Wireless Notes and Week-end Programmes: Rival Captains on To-day's Cup Final". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 24 April 1926. p. 14.
- ^ "English Cup Final". The Scotsman. 24 April 1926. p. 12.
- ^ a b c d e "Bolton Wins The Cup". The Observer. Manchester: C. P. Scott. 25 April 1926. p. 17.
- ^ a b "The Cup Final: Bolton's Second Victory at Wembley". The Times. London: J. J. Astor. 26 April 1926. p. 5.
- ^ a b "Wanderers Return". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 28 April 1926.
- ^ "How footballers wages have changed over the years: in numbers". The Daily Telegraph. 18 January 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ^ "League Football: Manchester City's Step Towards Safety". The Manchester Guardian. C. P. Scott. 28 April 1926. p. 5.
- ^ James (2006). p. 241.
- ^ James (2006) p. 169.