Newcastle-Online.com take an in depth look at the three previous meetings
between the two sides in the FA Cup.
Filed: 16th April 2005
FA Cup Semi-Final (27th March 1909)
Newcastle United 0-1 Manchester United
Newcastle were chasing the double heading into their FA Cup Semi-Final
match at Sheffield United's Bramall Lane against current Champions
Manchester United. The table topping Magpies were expected to beat
the Old Trafford men to reach the Final for the 4th time in 5 years,
having done so in 1905, 1906 and 1908 - losing on each occasion. However
Man Utd won the evenly contested match 1-0, going on to win the Cup
for the first time in their histoy.
Failure in the Cup didn't dampen Newcastle's quest for the League
Title though, winning the 1st Division with a new record points total
of 53, seven clear of Everton. It had been a typically bizarre season
for the club. The season couldn't have got underway on a worse footing
with several big star players including 1907 League winners Bill McCracken,
Peter McWilliam, John Rutherford and Jimmy Howie all falling out of
favour with the Management Directors Committee as well as centre-forward
hero Bill Appleyard quitting due to injury. United's rebels were subsequently
dropped.
On the field however, Newcastle made a great start to the season -
winning their first 5 games but even such a great start was tempered
by the injury to Appleyard's replacement, Bob Blanthorne who had broken
his leg on his debut during the opening 1-0 win over Bradford City.
Many players were tried in the centre-forward position but to no avail.
The United Directors couldn't allow the team to go any longer without
a recognised centre-forward so they splashed out £850 on the country's
best centre-forward - Bolton's England international Albert Shepherd.
The Geordie faithful had a new number 9 hero and United had a new
goalscorer with Shepherd getting amongst the goals on his debut away
to Forest as Newcastle thrashed the Nottingham club 4-0.
Perched second in the League a record 56,000 crowd gathered at St.
James' Park on the 5th of December as local rivals Sunderland come
to Toon on a wet rainy day. United, with a side packed with reserves
and youngsters, in for their big name stars who had been out of favour
all season due to their falling out with the management in the Summer,
went into the break at 1-1. After the break though nobody could have
predicted what happened next. Sunderland scored a further 8 goals
to run out eventual 9-1 winners, a record home defeat to inflict total
humiliation on their esteemed big City rivals - on United's home turf
too.
Although Newcastle fielded a severely weakened side and finished the
game with only 9 men due to Whitson and Duncan picking up injuries
the result not only shocked United and the thousands of Geordies who
attended but also the whole Football League. It was Newcastle's blackest
day ever and the margin of the result gave the rest of the challenging
pack hope that the Magpies were very much fallible - and beatable.
After the disaster however, the Directors Committee recalled United's
star men back to the starting lineup and if anything the defeat spurred
the Toon on - in some style too. Newcastle only lost 5 League games
on their way to their second Championship win after that humiliating
defeat, one of them away to Sunderland who completed the double with
a 3-1 win.
FA Cup side: Lawrence, McCracken, Whitson, Howie,
Veitch, McWilliam, Duncan, Higgins, Shepherd, Stewart, Wilson.
The following season Newcastle lifted their first ever FA Cup, beating
Barnsley 2-0 in a replay.
FA Cup 5th Round (18th February 1990)
Newcastle United 2-3 Manchester United
2nd Division Newcastle faced 1st Division Manchester United at St.
James' Park in a live televised match. 31,805 Geordies gathered at
the Old Gallowgate to witness an exciting and action packed game that
ebbed and flowed. United went a goal down in the first half thanks
to a Mark Robins goal but a penalty by Mark McGhee leveled the scores
at 1-1 just after the break. Not long after Danny Wallace put the
away side back in front.
With over an hour on the clock Newcastle made it 2-2 with a bullet
header from Kevin Scott but Brian McClair grabbed Man Utd's winner
with just over 10 minutes remaining. The Old Trafford side went onto
win the Cup, beating Crystal Palace 1-0 in a reply. Sir Alex Ferguson's
first trophy and the spring board for the decade plus period of dominance
that followed.
In the League Jim Smith's United were going well with McGhee and Mickey
Quinn in prolific form, plundering in 25 and 34 goals respectively
given Newcastle a 3rd place finish with 80 points, 5 less than Champions
Leeds United.
It was into the play offs for the Magpies and with it one of the darkest
moments in the club's history. Paired with bitter rivals Sunderland
in the Semis United drew 0-0 at Roker Park but lost the return match
2-0 at St. James's amid crowd invasions. The Wearsiders went on to
lose to Swindon in the Final but were promoted in their place after
the Football League found the Robins guilty of financial irregularities.
To rub salt into the wounds the Mackems had finished 3 places below
Newcastle with 6 points less.
FA Cup side: Burridge, Ranson, Stimson, Aitken, Scott,
Bradshaw, Brock, Dillon, Quinn, McGhee, Sweeney (Brazil).
FA Cup Final (22nd May 1999)
Newcastle United 0-2 Manchester United
Newcastle were looking to make it second time lucky in the FA Cup
Final, having been beating 2-0 by Arsenal the previous year under
Kenny Dalglish. With the Scot sacked 2 games into the season however,
it was Ruud Gullit's turn to end the long wait for silverware but
like the previous 30 years, United's efforts were in vain.
Having come on for the injured Roy Keane Man Utd's Teddy Sheringham
opened the scoring with under 15 minutes on the clock and not long
after the break Paul Scholes made it 2-0 and that's how the scores
remained as the Old Trafford side complete the double. A few days
later they made it a treble, winning the European Cup.
A season that promised so much ended in bitter disappointment. After
being handed close to 15m to spend in the transfer market it came
as a surprise to many when Dalglish bit the bullet after an opening
day 0-0 draw at home to Charlton was followed with a 1-1 draw at Stamford
Bridge against Chelsea. A shock decision by Freddy Shepherd but one
greeted with delight on Tyneside.
In came flamboyant Dutchman and former European player of the year
Gullit who had guided Chelsea to success. The former AC Milan man
promised "shexy football" but in truth, United's exploits
in the Cup masked over a hugely disappointing League campaign, finishing
down in 13th again with just 46 points. A month into the following
season and Gullit was also sacked, replaced by Geordie and former
England and Barcelona manager Bobby Robson.
FA Cup side: Harper, Griffin, Domi, Charvet, Dabizas, Speed, Lee,
Hamann (Ferguson), Shearer, Ketsbaia (Glass), Solano (Maric). |
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