The 1972 FA Cup Final took place on 6 May 1972 at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
. It was the centenary final (although only the 91st final due to the world wars) and the 44th to be played at Wembley.
It was contested between cup holders
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, who had won the
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 Engla ...
and 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 ...
the previous season, and
Leeds United, who had won the
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...
and finished second in the league the previous season, but had never won the FA Cup. Arsenal and Leeds became the first clubs to have faced one another in both English domestic cup finals: the two had previously contested the
1968 Football League Cup Final
The 1968 Football League Cup Final took place on 2 March 1968 at Wembley Stadium. It was the eighth final and the second to be played at Wembley. It was contested between Arsenal and Leeds United.
Leeds had been Inter-Cities Fairs Cup finalists ...
, which Leeds had won, 1–0.
Arsenal planned to make it the third successive decade for a club to return as Cup-holders and win for a second successive year, as
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
had done in 1952 and
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
in 1962.
This final is the origin of the song "Leeds! Leeds! Leeds!" (commonly known as "
Marching On Together"), which was the B-side of Leeds's Cup Final record. The song is still played by United and other Leeds sports teams.
Road to Wembley
Match summary
The Leeds duo
Mick Jones and
Allan 'Sniffer' Clarke combined to produce a goal in the fifty-third minute. Jones sent across a hard, shoulder-high centre and Clarke headed powerfully past Arsenal keeper
Geoff Barnett's left hand from fifteen yards.
A match that often fell below the highest level began badly with a foul by Clarke on
Alan Ball in the first five seconds and the first of four bookings –
Bob McNab
Robert McNab (born 20 July 1943) is an English former footballer who played as a defender. McNab featured for clubs Huddersfield Town, Arsenal, Wolverhampton Wanderers, San Antonio Thunder, Barnet, Vancouver Whitecaps and Tacoma Stars in his pla ...
bringing down
Peter Lorimer as early as the second minute. Neither side played consistently up to their capabilities, yet both had their moments.
Charlie George
Frederick Charles George (born 10 October 1950) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward.
George began his career as a youngster with Arsenal and was part of their 1970–71 League and FA Cup Double-winning team, ...
's fierce volley cannoned back off the bar for Arsenal, and both Clarke and Lorimer struck the woodwork for Leeds.
Leeds' jubilation at the end was tempered by a last-minute injury to Mick Jones, who dislocated his elbow and had to be helped up the steps by
Norman Hunter to receive his winners' medal.
Match facts
References
External links
Match Programmeat fa-cupfinals.co.uk
Game factsat soccerbase.com
Full Results from the 1972 FA Cup competitionat soccerbase.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1972 Fa Cup Final
Final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
FA Cup Finals
FA Cup Final 1972
FA Cup Final 1972
FA Cup Final
FA Cup Final