There was a thread a while ago about the FA Cup losing it's magic and a lot of us posted memories of the glory years. I found this on Twitter this morning - I was always a BBC man (boy) myself but this is the ITV schedule for the big day. Hope it brings back some memories.
That's brilliant. I remember I'd be playing footy with me mates on the fields as the two teams, and then would rush home and we'd write the names of both squads before the match and have a family first goal scorer sweepstake. Great days
That's just how I remember cup final day. The build up, facts and trivia, special guests and cup related clips. Abide with me, the game and the presentation after climbing the 39 steps (if the game was won). Then out to play footie after the match was over. It was a very special day in the football calendar back then.
I remember Grandstand doing a big thing about trying to find the player from the earliest possible cup final who was still alive at the time. I've no idea who it was they found, but on a behind the scenes tour of Oakwell with a youth group I was in, probably in the late seventies/early eighties, we were told that the Barnsley keeper Jack Cooper was still alive. He would have been from an earlier final than the one the BBC found, but his family said he was too old and wouldn't want all the attention, so the club never contacted the BBC.
I love how even on cup final day, nowt got in the way of ITVs wrestling! Probably why I always stuck to the BBC.
