They may have happened 149 years apart, but there are a lot of similarities between the FA Cup campaigns of 1884-85 and 2023-24, but will they end in the same way?
It is the afternoon of the 11th October 1884 and the players of Blackburn Rovers are looking forward to playing their first competitive match since defeating Scottish giants Queen’s Park two-one at the Oval just over seven months ago.
They host near neighbours Rossendale FC in the 1st Round of the 1884-85 FA Cup, a club that has played just one game in the FA Cup, and a club Blackburn Rovers are expected to beat with ease. And thanks in no small part to a four-bagger by Howard Fecitt, the Rovers surpass their previous record score in the competition with an eleven-nil victory, a club record that stands to this day.
Their defence of their FA Cup crown is well underway.
Two hundred miles north in Glasgow the players of Queen’s Park FC are going to have to wait a little bit longer to get the frustration of being last season’s beaten FA Cup Finalists out of their system as their opponents Stoke FC make the decision to withdraw from the competition. Nothing new for Queen’s Park, they’d won the previous season’s Scottish FA Cup Final in an exact same fashion.
One hundred and forty nine years later defending FA Cup holders Manchester City hosted struggling Huddersfield Town of the EFL Championship in the 3rd Round of the 2023-24 FA Cup. A double by Phil Foden contributed to a comfortable five-nil victory for the Citizens and the defence of their FA Cup crown was underway.
Beaten Finalists Manchester United had to travel to EFL One side Wigan Athletic, a club with a recent FA Cup pedigree over Manchester City, but a two-nil victory for the Red Devils meant that they wouldn’t suffer the same fate as their blue neighbours.
Back in 1884-85 season Blackburn Rovers were drawn at home to town rivals Blackburn Olympic in the 2nd Round of the FA Cup. Blackburn Olympic had been the first provincial northern club to lift the FA Cup one year before Rovers did so, and one year after Rovers failed to make that claim. Blackburn Olympic were formidable opponents and had only exited last season’s FA Cup with defeat by Queen’s Park in the Semi-Finals.
A very tight game on 6th December ended in favour to Rovers by the odd goal in five thanks again to a brace by Howard Fecit. Whilst Rovers would go on to even greater achievements over the next century or so, the match would signal the beginning of the end for their rivals Olympic who dissolved as a club less than five years after.
Up in Glasgow Queen’s Park were expected to canter through their 2nd Round tie at home to Crewe Alexandra. On their way to the Final in the previous season they had started their campaign with a ten-nil victory at Crewe and more of the same was supposed to be on the cards. However, the Cheshire side proved to be much more stubborn this time around and were only trailing by two goals to one when the match was abandoned due to a torrential storm just after the second half kicked off.
Bizarrely, despite there being almost half the match still to be played, the FA decided that the two-one result should stand and Queen’s Park were advanced to the 3rd Round.
Back in the present season, Manchester City were drawn away to Tottenham Hotspur, in what would prove to be a tight encounter echoing the challenges of Blackburn Rovers almost 150 years previously. In the end Manchester City prevailed thanks to a late Nathan Ake strike and continued their quest to retain their FA Cup crown.
Manchester United had the seemingly easier task of an away trip to League Two Newport County, but, again with echoes of Queen’s Park in the Victorian era, the game would prove to be a more difficult assignment than expected with the hosts pulling back a two goal deficit with goals either side of half-time. The Red Devils eventually prevailed with Rasmus Hojlund finally settling the tie deep into time added on.
The 3rd Round in 1884-85 season saw Blackburn Rovers drawn at home against another Blackburn based club, Witton FC, competing in the FA Cup for the first time and making it through the first two rounds courtesy of a walkover and a bye. Fecit was amongst the scorers again as five different players contributed to the convincing five-one victory.
Queen’s Park had to travel to Leek FC in Staffordshire also participating in the FA Cup for the first time but who had needed to win both their previous ties beating Cheshire sides Northwich Victoria and Macclesfield FC. It proved to be another difficult game for Queen’s Park but the Scottish side eventually came through winning by the odd goal in five.
Back in the 21st Century both Manchester sides were drawn away from home to Premier League clubs struggling at the foot of the table, and just as in the 19th Century the holders also had a comfortable victory whilst the previous season’s runners-up once again came through a tight encounter.
Manchester City won 6-2 at Luton Town with Erling Haaland netting five times, the first player to achieve that feat in the ‘proper’ rounds of the FA Cup since Duane Darby scored a double hat-trick for Hull City in their eight-four 1st Round replay victory over Whitby Town in the 1996-97 season.
Manchester United yet again left it very late to win a tight encounter against Nottingham Forest with Brazilian midfielder Casemiro flicking home the winner in the last minute of normal time.
Back in the Victorian era the 4th Round witnessed extremely comfortable victories for both the previous season’s Finalists. Blackburn Rovers were drawn at home to the original Romford FC, a club with a decent pedigree in the FA Cup having been Quarter Finalists just four seasons previously. However, Howard Fecit scored his eighth and ninth goals of the 1884-85 FA Cup campaign as part of Rovers’ eight-nil victory over their southern opponents.
Queen’s Park hosted one of the traditional amateur old boys teams, Old Wykehamists, former pupils of Winchester College. The golden age of the gentlemen amateurs dominating English football was on the wane, and Queen’s Park (themselves an amateur side) romped to a seven-nil victory over their English counterparts.
During this period the FA Cup was going through a significant growth spurt with significantly higher numbers of clubs entering the competition year on year. As a consequence the FA had not yet established a standardised structure for their competition and in order to ensure the Quarter Finals contained exactly eight clubs, the 5th Round required the majority of clubs to be advanced without playing a game. And so both Blackburn Rovers and Queen’s Park became Quarter Finalists again.
Both clubs were drawn away to future Football League clubs and both would have to be at their best to prevail. Blackburn Rovers had to travel to West Bromwich Albion participating in the FA Cup for only the second time and who had netted 15 times to reach the Quarter Finals. Joe Lofthouse and Jimmy Douglas scored the goals to give Rovers a two-nil victory and another Semi-Final appearance.
Queen’s Park visited Notts County who had been beaten Semi-Finalists in both the previous two seasons. Unsurprisingly, it proved to be a very hard fought game with Robert Christie scoring a brace to ensure a two-two draw and a replay at Derby Cricket Ground seven days later. Walter Arnott and William Sellar scored the goals that gave Queen’s Park a two-one victory and another Semi-Final place.
In 2023-24 the two Manchester clubs had earned their place in the Quarter Finals, Manchester United for a competition record forty-eighth time. Both were drawn at home to fellow Premier League clubs vying for European qualification.
Manchester City hosted Newcastle United with Bernardo Silva bagging a first half brace to take the Citizens into a record setting sixth consecutive FA Cup Semi-Final. Manchester United came through a seven goal, topsy-turvey thriller against Liverpool FC thanks to a goal in the last minute of extra time by Amad Diallo. The victory meant Manchester United extended their own competition record of most Semi-Final appearances to thirty-two.
The Semi-Finals draw of the 1884-85 season kept Blackburn Rovers and Queen’s Park apart. Rovers faced Old Carthusians, former pupils of Charterhouse School, at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. This would be the last hurrah for the English former pupils type clubs in the last four of the FA Cup, and Blackburn Rovers emphasised the change in power in football with an emphatic five-one victory.
A week later Queen’s Park faced the other Nottingham side at Derby Cricket Ground and played out a one-one draw against Nottingham Forest. The replay a fortnight later would be an historic occasion being the only FA Cup Semi-Final tie ever to be played in Scotland at Merchiston Castle School. William Sellar scored twice alongside an own goal to ensure the 1884-85 FA Cup Final would involve the same two clubs as the previous season’s Final, the first time that had happened, and for almost another 150 years the only time it had happened.
But all that was to change in 2023-24 season. Defending champions Manchester City made hard work of defeating Chelsea FC one-nil at Wembley with Bernardo Silva grabbing the late winner after the Blues had been the more likely side to claim victory.
Manchester United made even harder work of getting past EFL Championship side Coventry City, in the FA Cup Semi-finals for only the second time in the history. The Red Devils cruised to what appeared to be an unassailable three goal lead only for the Sky Blues to roar back and level the tie deep into time added on.
An ebb and low extra time looked to have been settled by a remarkable last minute winning goal for Coventry City but Victor Torp’s goal was harshly ruled offside in the build up by VAR. Manchester United would go on to win the game four-two on penalties and make it to a record twenty-second FA Cup Final, and set up only the second ever consecutive repeat Final in the process.
Back in the Victorian era the FA Cup Final of 1885 took place at the Oval Cricket Ground as it had always done since the competition’s inception for the 1871-72 season. Blackburn Rovers had beaten Queen’s Park against the odds in the previous season’s Final, but in 1885 it was the English side that were deemed to be the favourites.
James Forrest (who also scored in 1884 Final) and James Brown (who would also score in the 1886 Final) won the game two-nil for Blackburn Rovers as they retained the Trophy, the second of what would be a hat-trick of FA Cup triumphs for the club.
It would be the last significant contribution to the FA Cup for Queen’s Park and the last time an amateur side would appear in the FA Cup Final. The game of Football and the FA Cup would be changed forever.
So in 2024 Manchester City are the overwhelming favourites to retain the FA Cup, yet another similarity with the 1884-85 campaign, but will fate intervene to prevent a similar ending in this season’s Final? The omens for Manchester United are good. The last time the club ended a league campaign with a negative goal difference (1990) they lifted the FA Cup. The only other time the FA Cup Final has been played on 25th May (1963) Manchester United won the Trophy.
Whatever the outcome of this season’s Final, the FA Cup continues to provide memorable, historical moments well into its sixteenth decade. And long may that last!