The 1888 FA Cup Final was contested by

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 ...

and

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

at the

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 ...

. Preston were strong favourites for the Cup, having set a record which still stands today by beating Hyde 26–0 in the first round, and were so confident of overcoming West Bromwich Albion in the final that they asked to be photographed with the trophy before the game. The FA president 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.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. Woodha ...

and

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 ...

Fred Dewhurst Frederick Dewhurst (16 December 1863 – 21 April 1895) was an English professional footballer, who played as an inside forward for Preston North End in the late 19th century. Dewhurst was the first North End player to play representative foot ...

scored Preston's effort.

Overview

John Goodall John Goodall (19 June 1863 – 20 May 1942) was a footballer who rose to fame as a centre forward for England and for Preston North End at the time of the development of the Football League, and also became Watford's first manager in 1903. He ...

recalled many years later how, at the final whistle, he stood motionless in the centre circle for many minutes unable to comprehend the result. The refereeing of the game by Major Francis Marindin was also questioned privately by many observers who felt that he had potentially shown bias towards Albion's all-English eleven (Preston's team contained a majority of Scots). At one point during the game he stopped play just as Preston were about to score to award a free kick to Albion, despite no Albion player having made an appeal as was required by the rules of the game at that time. Cambridge University captain

Tinsley Lindley Dr. Tinsley Lindley OBE (27 October 1865 – 31 March 1940) was an English footballer. He was described as "an ideal centre forward". He scored three goals in his debut aged 16 for Nottingham Forest. He was an amateur who did not wear football ...

later commented to defeated Preston player Jack Ross "Well Jack, you cannot expect to win when playing against eleven men and the devil."Beastly Fury: The strange birth of British Football: Richard Sanders: page 138 The Preston players, however, cited their own pre match routine for their defeat: Bob Holmes recalled "We got starved to death on the Thames bank and could not get warm again. The invincibles entered the Kennington Oval field that day in a pitiful state. We were daft." At this time

The 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 ...

was considered a greater sporting event than the cup final. By contrast, Albion captain

Billy Bassett William Isiah Bassett (27 January 1869 – 8 April 1937) was an English association footballer, director, and club chairman who served West Bromwich Albion for over half a century. Biography Playing career Born in West Bromwich, the eldest of ...

stated "Jack Ross lost his cool that day. that was the key. I managed to keep my cool and the cooler I kept, the rasher Ross got." Bassett also recalled that it was Ross' rashness that cost his side the winning goal as he charged at Bassett and ended up somersaulting clean over him. As he picked himself up he watched as Bassett was able to set up the clinching goal. Bassett however was complimentary of his opponents when, years later he stated "I have seen all the best sides in Football but I have never seen a side that compared to Preston North End at their best. We beat them but I do not pretend for a moment that we deserved to beat them."

Match details

Legacy

In 2015 what was believed to be one of a small number of surviving copies of the programme from the Final, which originally sold for a penny, was put up for auction. The programme had at one time been owned by West Bromwich Albion director Harold Ely. At auction it achieved a sale price of £20,000.

References

Line-ups
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fa Cup Final 1888 1888 1887–88 in English football West Bromwich Albion F.C. matches Preston North End F.C. matches March 1888 sports events 1888 sports events in London