The 1871–72 Football Association Challenge Cup was the first staging of the
Football Association Challenge Cup, usually known in the modern era as the FA Cup, the oldest association football competition in the world. Fifteen of the association's fifty member clubs entered the first competition, although three withdrew without playing a game. In the final, held at
Kennington Oval in London on 16 March 1872,
Wanderers beat the
Royal Engineers by a single goal, scored by
Morton Betts, who was playing under the pseudonym A. H. Chequer.
Background
The Football Association
The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world ...
, the governing body of the sport in England, had been formed in 1863, but for the first eight years of its existence, its member clubs played only
friendly matches against each other, with no prizes at stake.
In 1871, however,
Charles Alcock, the association's secretary, conceived the idea for a
knock-out tournament open to all member clubs, with a trophy to be awarded to the winners. Alcock's inspiration came from his days at
Harrow School
Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (sc ...
, where the houses which comprised the school competed each year for the title of "Cock House".
Rules
The rules of the competition stipulated that each team should consist of eleven players, and that each match should last 90 minutes (at this time, the
Laws of the Game did not specify these matters). They made no provision for
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only ...
. When a match was drawn after 90 minutes, there would either be a replay, or both teams would be allowed to proceed to the next round; the choice between these alternatives was left to the organising committee's discretion in each case. Matches were officiated by two umpires, one provided by each team:
following disputes over the laws in the earlier rounds of the competition, a neutral referee was added in the later rounds
At this time, changes in the
laws of the game came into force immediately. Thus th
laws of 1871were used for most of the competition, but th
laws of 1872 which introduced the
corner kick and the
free kick for handball, were used for the last two matches (the final and the semi-final replay between Royal Engineers and Crystal Palace).
Format
First Round: 14 teams (with Hampstead Heathens getting a bye) would play against a different team. The seven winners would advance. Hitchin, Crystal Palace, Queen's Park and
Donington School
__NOTOC__
Cowley Academy (formally The Thomas Cowley High School) is a mixed secondary school with Academy status, in Donington, Lincolnshire, England. As of 1 September 2022 it is part of the academy trust known as SLAT (South Lincolnshire Ac ...
all advanced because of either a draw or the match not being played
Second Round: The remaining 10 teams would play. The 5 winners would move on.
Third Round: 4 teams would play, Queen's Park would advance to the Semi-Final without even playing a single match
Semi-Final: With Crystal Palace and Royal Engineers drawing in the Third Round, they would both advance. The four teams all had to replay. The winners all advanced.
Final: The two remaining teams would play at the Kennington Oval. The winner would be crowned Champions.
Results
Fifty clubs were eligible to enter, but only twelve chose to do so:
Barnes,
Civil Service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...
,
Clapham Rovers
Clapham Rovers was from its foundation in 1869 a leading English sports organisation in the two dominant codes of football, association football and rugby union. It was a prominent club in the late 19th century but is now defunct. The club pl ...
,
Crystal Palace,
Hampstead Heathens,
Harrow Chequers
Harrow Chequers Football Club was a football club from London, England in the 1860s to early 1890s. It played as the Harrow Chequers from 1865 to 1876, when it was then renamed the Old Harrovians, and continued play until at least 1891. Derive ...
,
Harrow School
Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (sc ...
, Lausanne,
Royal Engineers,
Upton Park,
Wanderers and
Windsor Home Park.
Before the first round took place, however, Harrow School, Lausanne and Windsor Home Park all withdrew, reducing the number of entrants to nine. Six other clubs agreed to enter, however, including the leading club in Scotland,
Queen's Park.
Most of the original entrants are now defunct. Queen's Park continued to compete in the FA Cup until 1887, when the
Scottish Football Association
The Scottish Football Association (also known as the SFA and the Scottish FA; sco, Scots Fitba Association; Scottish Gaelic: ''Comann Ball-coise na h-Alba'') is the governing body of football in Scotland and has the ultimate responsibility fo ...
banned its member clubs from entering the English competition. They are still active in the lower divisions of the
Scottish Professional Football League.
Marlow and Maidenhead (now
Maidenhead United) are still active, and each has only missed a single season in the history of the competition. A team from the Civil Service still exists, playing in
Amateur Football Alliance competitions. The
Crystal Palace team from 1871 to 1872 was thought to be a defunct former amateur club, but historians have found links to the
Crystal Palace professional club which exists today, although this has still to be officially ratified. The team from
Hitchin in the 1870s reformed to become the modern
Hitchin Town
Hitchin Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. They are currently members of the . Founded in 1865 and known as 'The Canaries', Hitchin Town have been based at Top Field since their fou ...
in 1928.
The leading Scottish club
Queen's Park entered the competition and managed to reach the semi-finals without having to play a match, due to a combination of an inability to agree venue, opponents withdrawing from the competition and
byes. After holding Wanderers to a draw in the semi-final, however, they could not afford to return to London for a replay and were themselves forced to withdraw, giving their opponents a
walkover
John Baxter Taylor and William Robbins (athlete)">William Robbins to refuse to race in protest.
A walkover, also W.O. or w/o (originally two words: "walk over") is awarded to the opposing team/player etc, if there are no other players avai ...
into the final.
Calendar
First round
Although there were seven matches scheduled in the first round, only four took place. Wanderers and Royal Engineers both won their matches by
walkover
John Baxter Taylor and William Robbins (athlete)">William Robbins to refuse to race in protest.
A walkover, also W.O. or w/o (originally two words: "walk over") is awarded to the opposing team/player etc, if there are no other players avai ...
when their opponents withdrew from the competition, and as Queen's Park and Donington School were unable to agree on a mutually acceptable date for the game, they were both allowed to progress to the second round without playing.
Due to there being an odd number of entrants, Hampstead Heathens were awarded a
bye to the second round. Barnes beat a Civil Service team consisting of only eight players.
The first goal in FA Cup competition was scored by
Jarvis Kenrick of Clapham Rovers.
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Queen's Park and Donington School were both permitted to advance to the second round because they could not agree on a venue.
Hitchin and Crystal Palace were both permitted to advance to the second round without a replay being played
Second round
In the second round Queen's Park and Donington School were again drawn together. This time the school club withdrew from the competition altogether, meaning that Queen's Park progressed to the quarter-final, still without having played a match. At Kennington Oval, The Royal Engineers easily beat a Hitchin team that could muster only eight players. The match between Barnes and Hampstead Heathens ended in a draw after bad light stopped play. The committee ordered a replay (the first in FA Cup history), with the Heathens emerging victorious, despite playing both matches away from home and with only ten players.
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Replays
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Third round
Due to there being an odd number of teams left in the competition, Queen's Park received a
bye and thus reached the semi-finals without having played a match in the competition. The match between Wanderers and Crystal Palace finished in a draw; both teams were allowed through to the semi-finals. Royal Engineers completed the semi-final line-up after beating Hampstead Heathens. The Heathens never again entered the competition.
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Wanderers and Crystal Palace were both permitted to advance to the semi-finals without a replay
Semi-finals
All matches from this stage of the competition onwards were played at Kennington Oval in London. Both semi-finals finished in goalless draws and thus went to replays. Queen's Park, however, could not afford to make the long trip from Glasgow a second time and thus withdrew from the competition, giving Wanderers a place in the final. Wanderers proposed thirty minutes of extra time to settle the match, but Queen's Park refused. Royal Engineers secured the second place in the final by defeating Crystal Palace at the second attempt.
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Replays
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Final
The final took place at Kennington Oval between Wanderers and Royal Engineers. The Engineers were leading exponents of the tactic of passing the ball, which at the time was known as the "
Combination Game" and considered extremely innovative at a time when most teams relied solely on
dribbling. Despite this, Wanderers dominated the game and won 1–0 with a goal from
Morton Betts. For unclear reasons, Betts played in the final under the pseudonym "A.H. Chequer", derived from his membership of the
Harrow Chequers
Harrow Chequers Football Club was a football club from London, England in the 1860s to early 1890s. It played as the Harrow Chequers from 1865 to 1876, when it was then renamed the Old Harrovians, and continued play until at least 1891. Derive ...
club.
See also
*
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...
*
FA Cup Final
The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official atten ...
References
External links
FA Cup Historyat The Football Association
at Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fa Cup 1871-72
1871-72
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...