The 1886 FA Cup Final was a
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
match between
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
and
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
on Saturday, 3 April 1886 at
Kennington Oval
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it ...
in south London. The result was a goalless draw. Albion wanted to play
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 onl ...
but Blackburn declined and so a replay was necessary. This took place a week later at the
Racecourse Ground
The Racecourse Ground ( cy, Y Cae Ras) is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C.
It is the world's oldest international football stadium that still hosts international matches, having hosted Wales' first home i ...
in
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
, the first venue outside London to stage an FA Cup final match. Blackburn won 2–0 to win the tournament for the third successive time. Following
Wanderers (1876–1878), Blackburn were the second team to win three successive finals and, as of 2022, remain the last to do so. Their goals were scored by
Jimmy Brown and Joe Sowerbutts. Both matches were refereed by Major
Francis Marindin
Colonel Sir Francis Arthur Marindin, KCMG (1 May 1838 – 21 April 1900) served with the Royal Engineers and was a key figure in the early development of association football. He was later knighted for his work in public services.[1885–86 FA Cup
The 1885–86 Football Association Challenge Cup was the 15th edition of the FA Cup, England's oldest football tournament. There were 130 entrants, sixteen more than in the previous season, although six teams did not play a match. Five Scottish ...]
, the 15th edition of the world's oldest football knockout competition, and England's primary
cup competition
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
, the Football Association Challenge Cup, better known as the
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 competi ...
. Blackburn were making their fourth (of eight) appearances in the final; Albion their first (of ten). It was the first final to involve two extant clubs who are still members of either the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
or the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
.
Route to the final
Blackburn Rovers
Following their debut in 1879–80, this was the seventh time
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
played in the
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 competi ...
. Having been
runners-up
A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements. in 1881–82, they had won the competition in both 1883–84 and 1884–85. Blackburn began the 1885–86 tournament with an away tie at nearby
Clitheroe
Clitheroe () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists visiting the area. In 2018, the Cl ...
. They won this 2–0 and then had three successive home ties before being awarded a
bye through the fifth round (the last sixteen) to the quarter-finals. They were drawn away to
Brentwood at the
Essex County Cricket Ground where Blackburn won 3–1 to reach the semi-finals. This match, played on 13 March at the
Derbyshire County Cricket Ground, was against
Swifts
Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to:
* SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks
** SWIFT code
* Swift (programming language)
* Swift (bird), a family of birds
It may also refer to:
Organizations
* SWIFT, ...
. Blackburn won 2–1 with goals scored by
Nat Walton
Nathaniel Walton (28 May 1867 – 3 March 1930) was an English international footballer, who played as an inside forward.
Career
Born in Preston, Walton played professionally for Blackburn Rovers, and earned one cap for England in 1890.
Like ...
and Thomas Strahan.
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
made their FA Cup debut in 1883–84 and this was their third season in the competition. They were
drawn at home in every round prior to the semi-final. In the first two rounds, they defeated
Aston Unity 4–1 and
Wednesbury Old Athletic
Wednesbury Old Athletic, often referred to as W.O.A.C., was an English association football club based in Wednesbury, West Midlands (Staffordshire at the time). There were three clubs that had this name.
Original club
The first began life as t ...
3–2. They received a
bye to the fourth round, where they beat
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
3–1.
Old Carthusians were defeated by a single goal in the fifth round. A
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
from
Jem Bayliss
Albert Edward James Matthias Bayliss (1 August 1863 – 19 August 1933), known as Jem Bayliss, was an English footballer who played for West Bromwich Albion, as well as the English national side.
He captained the West Bromwich Albion side whic ...
—the first by an Albion player in the FA Cup—contributed to a 6–0 quarter-final victory over
Old Westminsters, putting Albion into the FA Cup semi-final for the first time (they had reached the quarter-final in 1884–85). The semi-final took place at
Aston Lower Grounds
Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway stations ...
and was against one of Albion's local rivals,
Small Heath Alliance. Albion won 4–0—
Arthur Loach
Arthur Albert Loach (8 November 1863 – 9 February 1958) was an English footballer who played as a forward. He joined West Bromwich Albion in August 1882 and became one of the club's first professionals three years later when the FA legalised ...
and
George Woodhall
George "Spry" Woodhall (5 September 1863 – 29 September 1924) was an English footballer, who played most of his career with West Bromwich Albion, helping them to reach three consecutive FA Cup finals, including winning the cup in 1888.
Woodh ...
each scoring twice—to become the first
Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...
club to reach the
FA Cup Final
The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football ev ...
. After the game, Small Heath supporters invaded the pitch and then pelted missiles at vehicles bound for
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area known as the Black Country, in terms of geography, ...
, causing several injuries.
Match
Pre-match
The 1886 final was the first to involve two extant clubs who are still members of either the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
or the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
. The match took place on the same day as the
University Boat Race
The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. There are separate men's a ...
and, in its ''Sporting Intelligence'' section the following Monday, the ''
Daily News'' reported that the kick-off was delayed until four o'clock so that people attending the Boat Race would be able to see the final too. The newspaper said the crowd was "probably the largest to attend an FA Cup final".
Final
The syndicated match report, published in each of the ''Daily News'', ''
The Morning Post
''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''.
History
The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning Po ...
'' and ''
The Standard'', said there was "an immense number of spectators, numbering about 17,000".
According to the ''Daily News'', Blackburn refused to play
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 onl ...
because they realised that Albion "had the better of them". The FA said the replay would be the following Saturday, 10 April, at either Derby or Kennington.
''The Standard'', however, correctly specified Derby as the replay venue.
Replay
The replay in
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
on 10 April was the first FA Cup final match to be played outside London. There were fears that the match would have to be postponed when Derby was hit by a blizzard that morning, but it blew over and the snow had thawed before the kick-off was due. Albion supporters carried cards saying "Play Up Throstles".
Nat Walton
Nathaniel Walton (28 May 1867 – 3 March 1930) was an English international footballer, who played as an inside forward.
Career
Born in Preston, Walton played professionally for Blackburn Rovers, and earned one cap for England in 1890.
Like ...
played for Blackburn instead of Joseph Heys. Albion were unchanged.
Details
Final
Replay
See also
*
1885–86 West Bromwich Albion F.C. season
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
External links
FA Cup Results Archiveat rsssf.com
Soccerbase summary – first matchSoccerbase summary – replay
{{DEFAULTSORT:FA Cup Final 1886
1886
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Upper Burma is formally annexed to British Burma, following its conquest in the Third Anglo-Burmese War of November 1885.
* January 5– 9 – Robert Louis Stevenson's novella ''Strange ...
1885–86 in English football
1886 sports events in London
April 1886 sports events
Blackburn Rovers F.C. matches
West Bromwich Albion F.C. matches