Have we ever played the F A Cup holders

[Draytonian III]

...... In a competitive match before,or was today a first

[andysly]

This is the second time. We played Wigan in August as well.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Everton Jan 85.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Arsenal Dec 05.

[Draytonian III]

Thanks for that,what about in a Home League match?

[neil grainger]

Good shout Draytonian........I don't think we have ever played the current FA Cup holders at home in a league match in our entire history

[Wokingviking]

We played Southampton in a friendly at Belle Vue at the beginning of 76-77 after they'd beaten Man U in the 76 Final.  They paraded the Cup by running around before the match.  Lawrie MacMenemy (sp?)  must have forgiven us by then and agreed to bring a team up to play us.  I think there was an ex-Rover who was their full-back who followed MacMenemy to Saints via Grimsby Town. Paul somebody...?

[BillyStubbsTears]

Paul Gilchrist

I went to that friendly

[Wokingviking]

Paul Gilchrist

I went to that friendly

Yep. Did we lose 2-1 or summat like that?

[BillyStubbsTears]

Don't remember Woking. I just remember me dad insisting that we went because we'd never get as close to the FA Cup again.

[Wokingviking]

I'd never seen it before but got very close as they ran round with it, I was squeezed into one of the gaps between the blue three-wheelers on the Popside (what a 'kin executive box those things were, best view in the house!) and nearly got a touch.  I think their captain who carried it round was Nick Holmes who had a beard as I recall.  Anyway, it was magical, never forgotten it, thanks dad.

[AlonzoDrake]

The closest we came to beating FA Cup holders was in September, 1964 when we defeated then current FA Cup Runners-Up Preston North End at Belle Vue, just 4 months after West Ham United had beaten them 3-2 in the 1964 FA Cup Final.

PNE came to Belle Vue in the Second Round of the League Cup to contest a game, now mainly forgotten, but one which caused quite a stir in the town at the time. Our ex-boy wonder, King Alick, had began his come back the previous season, and he was lining up that evening against Preston's current boy wonder, Howard Kendall, who at 17 had been the youngest ever player to play in an FA Cup Final.

There was also some controversy when Preston's manager Jimmy Milne refused to play under the Rovers floodlights, so the tie had to kick off at 5:30 pm so it could be played in day light. This gave the game quite an edge, and a 14,000 crowd saw us topple the previous season's Runners Up 1-0 thanks to an Alick Jeffrey goal.

I well remember those lights, originally installed by Peter Doherty in the early 50s -- many visiting teams complained about how dark it was in the corners of BV's then vast pitch. After that controversy, new floodlights were installed in the summer of '65.

[LongbridgeMGRover]

Now today was great but lets face it, Wigan is a Rugby League town. I look forward to a time in the not too distant future where we do something we have never done before...
A 'double' where the Rovers and the Dons do their bit for Donny and both beat their counterparts from the likes of Wigan, Blackpool, Leeds, Hull or Sheffield. I dont think we have ever had this before, or have we?.........over to you Dutch Uncle !!!

[Sammy Chung was King]

We've played ''The European cup Champions'' many times(LEEDS)

[Dutch Uncle]

The closest we came to beating FA Cup holders was in September, 1964 when we defeated then current FA Cup Runners-Up Preston North End at Belle Vue, just 4 months after West Ham United had beaten them 3-2 in the 1964 FA Cup Final.

PNE came to Belle Vue in the Second Round of the League Cup to contest a game, now mainly forgotten, but one which caused quite a stir in the town at the time. Our ex-boy wonder, King Alick, had began his come back the previous season, and he was lining up that evening against Preston's current boy wonder, Howard Kendall, who at 17 had been the youngest ever player to play in an FA Cup Final.

There was also some controversy when Preston's manager Jimmy Milne refused to play under the Rovers floodlights, so the tie had to kick off at 5:30 pm so it could be played in day light. This gave the game quite an edge, and a 14,000 crowd saw us topple the previous season's Runners Up 1-0 thanks to an Alick Jeffrey goal.

I well remember those lights, originally installed by Peter Doherty in the early 50s -- many visiting teams complained about how dark it was in the corners of BV's then vast pitch. After that controversy, new floodlights were installed in the summer of '65.

Hi Alonzo - I remember that match well. Actually I mentioned it deep in another thread ('A Day of Firsts' now well disappeared from the top page) - and I also mentioned a much more recent victory over the 'reigning' FA Cup Runners up - namely our 3-2 win at Fratton Park in 2010-11.

[BobG]

Paul Gilchrist wasn't a full back. Nothing like. Curly haired forward he was. Bombing on from just behind.

BobG

PS He lives about 10 miles from me now.

[drfc1951]

We played Southampton in a friendly at Belle Vue at the beginning of 76-77 after they'd beaten Man U in the 76 Final.  They paraded the Cup by running around before the match.  Lawrie MacMenemy (sp?)  must have forgiven us by then and agreed to bring a team up to play us.  I think there was an ex-Rover who was their full-back who followed MacMenemy to Saints via Grimsby Town. Paul somebody...?

The full back was Ian Branfoot.

[idler]

He signed for us as a centre forward but dropped further back later on at Southampton.