Charlie Ashmore & Andreas Kokkinos
In issue 243 of The Gooner, in the build up to last season’s final against Hull, we ran a special feature entitled Arsenal in the Cup Final, in which we asked contributors to recall a particular Cup Final in which Arsenal had taken part. To get in the mood for today, we are re-running a couple of those offerings, but before we do, just a couple of public service announcements:
1 – The club have requested Arsenal fans to wear yellow and blue to back the team at Wembley this afternoon, and will be helping the cause by giving away yellow and blue scarves to both those at the final and at the screening back in Highbury.
2 – If you are not in England and wish to join up with like-minded souls to catch the final, a list of venues showing the game and hosting Gooner cup final parties around the world can be found here. Also check out this piece for details of how you can download the latest issue of The Gooner to keep onto your smartphone or tablet if you are attending any of the cup final gatherings in the UK or around the world which are detailed here. (This has details of some get-togethers not on the REDaction list).
Ok, now on to the memories of past finals…
A Lesson in the Library (FA Cup Final v Man Utd 1979) by Charlie Ashmore
A glorious Saturday afternoon in May 1979 and where was this particular 12 year old? Sadly still at school. But where exactly? Was I where I was supposed to be – namely down at the playing field watching the 1st XI vs Parents Cricket match, a three line whip for all pupils? Or had I somehow managed to sneak back into the school buildings and infiltrate the library where the television was kept in order to watch Arsenal's second successive Cup Final? It will be no surprise that it was the latter – sitting under a table in case some teacher decided to double check that there were no waifs and strays where there shouldn't be.
I still remember my abject collapse the previous year as I ran blubbing to my bed when Ipswich beat us, so there I was feeling comfortable in the knowledge that the Fates had decided that this year I was to be rewarded for my suffering with a comfortable victory.
And then United scored. But no matter – it's far too late to make a difference surely. And then they scored again. And I am afraid I am not proud of my behaviour at that point. I will happily admit to losing it and for a short period a number of works of literature, some classic and some less so, could be seen flailing through the library air.
You see I had not yet learned to appreciate that an essential part of being an Arsenal fan is the knowledge that even our successes very rarely come comfortably and it seems to be as much a tradition of the club to do things the hard way as it is for the players all to wear the same length sleeve or for the Board Room to be decked out in flowers the colours of the visiting team.
So no sooner had I felt that the injustices of the world had decided to pick on me again than I saw the ball find its way into the United net courtesy of Alan Sunderland, whose celebration as he ran dementedly away from the goal with his arms in the air has been seen innumerable times since but has not a patch on the demented jubilation shown by this particular 12 year old, who was wholly oblivious in his unadulterated joy to the newly arrived presence in the room of a pair of adults – one parent and one teacher. The rest is painful but a pain which was easily borne. I had seen my first trophy won and life was beautiful.
Love Thy Neighbour? (1993 FA Cup Final Replay v Sheffield Wednesday) by Andreas Kokkinos
Having attended the rather drab Final on the Saturday, I was determined to witness someone lift the FA Cup. Replay tickets were sold on a first come first served basis, which meant it was an early start as I was living in Kent. I got to Highbury around 8am and the queue already seemed about 2,000 people long. After about 3 hours and numerous whispers that all the tickets had been sold, which amazingly people believed and left the queue, I got my ticket. At Wembley the seat next to me remained empty for the first 20 minutes of the match then the occupant stumbled along. He was as drunk as a person still able to walk could be. He spent the remainder of the first half smoking and slurring that he was beginning to feel ill, and vomiting was imminent. At half time he disappeared only to return just in time to see Chris Waddle equalise, for which he solely blamed me. He continued to blame me for literally everything that went wrong on the pitch, including extra-time, during which he wet himself. Needless to say that was also my fault. However, as penalties loomed Andy Linighan rose and headed home the winner in the last minute, euphoria erupted and my tormentor literally jumped on me cheering, hugging me, told me he loved me and kissed me on the head. For a brief moment I didn’t care, we had just won the FA Cup.
The current issue of The Gooner, a 64 page cup final special for £3 will be on sale on Wembley Way at next weekend’s FA Cup Final (with a free yellow ribbon for female purchasers until they run out). We also hope to have someone selling at the screening between Arsenal tube station and the stadium. The issue can also be bought online here. Copies of issue 243 with the full cup final memories feature are still available and can be bought online here.
DIGITAL ISSUES
The Gooner is also available in digital form, through The Gooner App on iPhones and iPads, the Exactly App for Android devices and now Kindle Fire owners can also get their fix by searching the Amazon App Store for The Gooner.
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All digital subscriptions include access to our digital back issue library which dates back to August 2010.
