April 23 – The FA Cup Leaves England

WITH it being St. George’s Day, it would surely be apt to tell you a story of a triumphant, rousing English performance, but instead today is the day that the FA Cup was taken out of the country for the first – and so far only – time, as Cardiff beat Arsenal 1-0 in the 1927 FA Cup Final.

Cardiff City had only been in the Football League for seven years, yet they had made their presence felt, finishing second on the league in 1924 and reaching the 1925 cup final, where they lost 1-0 to Sheffield United.

Arsenal, meanwhile, were looking quite tasty themselves. Under the tutorledge of Herbert Chapman and star player Charles Buchan they were setting about building a team that would dominate the 1930′s, and started the final as strong favourites.

Cardiff were lead by skipper Fred Keenor, and featured 19-year old left winger Ernie Curtis who was the youngest player to ever play in the cup final. Filling out their motley crew was goalkeeper Tom Farquarson who, rumour had it, was a member of the IRA and always carried a gun with him.

Broadcast live on the radio for the first time, the game itself was a cagey affair that saw both defences dominate until Arsenal keeper Dan Lewis (not a member of any terrorist organisation) had a moment to forget. In the 74th minute Hughie Ferguson struck a low, tame shot towards the goal that Lewis looked to have under control. As Len Davies advanced, the ball squirmed under Lewis who ended up elbowing the ball into the net.

Cardiff held on for a famous win and when Keenor received the trophy from George V he took it off English soil for the first time. As luck would have it, the Bluebirds have the chance to repeat their 1927 heroics when they face Portsmouth in this year’s final. And it would appear that today is one of those days when the footballing planets are in a strange alignment, causing all manner of coincidences, as Pompey are today celebrating the anniversary of their first title win in 1949. What does all this mean for 17th May this year? No idea.

See Dan Lewis’ moment of madness below and like John Prescott’s breakfast, we’ll be back in the morning with more of the same.