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1988 FA Cup Final
FA Cup.3
Event1987–88 FA Cup
Date14 May 1988 (1988-05-14)
VenueWembley Stadium, London
RefereeBrian Hill (Northamptonshire)
Attendance98,203
WeatherSunny
1987
1989

The 1988 FA Cup Final took place on 14 May 1988 at Wembley Stadium. It was contested between Wimbledon, unfashionable and unfancied, and Liverpool, the dominant English club side of the 1980s and newly crowned league champions.

The result was one of the biggest shocks in the history of the competition as the London side won 1–0 to win the cup for the only time in their history; they had just completed their second season in the Football League First Division and had only been in the Football League for 11 years. The final also featured the first penalty save in an FA Cup final (by Dave Beasant from John Aldridge) and the first goalkeeper (Beasant) to captain an FA Cup-winning side. It was the last FA Cup final to be broadcast by both ITV and the BBC, which had happened since 1958. Wimbledon's victory ended Liverpool's bid to become the first team to win the Double twice. This feat was eventually achieved by rivals Manchester United in 1995–96, when they earned their second domestic double.

Road to Wembley[]

Main article: 1987–88 FA Cup

Liverpool[]

Home teams listed first.

Round 3: Stoke City 0–0 Liverpool

Replay: Liverpool 1–0 Stoke City

Round 4: Aston Villa 0–2 Liverpool

Round 5: Everton 0–1 Liverpool

Round 6: Manchester City 0–4 Liverpool

Semi-final: Liverpool 2–1 Nottingham Forest (at Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield)

Wimbledon[]

Home teams listed first.

Round 3: Wimbledon 4–1 West Bromwich Albion

Round 4: Mansfield Town 1–2 Wimbledon

Round 5: Newcastle United 1–3 Wimbledon

Round 6: Wimbledon 2–1 Watford

Semi-final: Wimbledon 2–1 Luton Town (at White Hart Lane, London)

Match summary[]

Wimbledon took the lead shortly before half-time, when Lawrie Sanchez's looping header, from a Dennis Wise free kick on the left, went across goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar and into the net. Liverpool created a host of chances, including a chipped goal over the goalkeeper by Peter Beardsley which was disallowed as the referee had already awarded a free kick to Liverpool, but were unable to find a way past Wimbledon goalkeeper Dave Beasant. The Merseysiders were awarded a penalty on the hour mark following a foul by Clive Goodyear on John Aldridge, though replays showed that Goodyear won the ball cleanly, but Aldridge's penalty was saved by Beasant's diving save to his left, thus becoming the first keeper to save a penalty in a Wembley FA Cup final. The Londoners survived more pressure from Liverpool to secure their first major trophy and a notable upset in FA Cup Final history. Dave Beasant also became the first goalkeeper to receive the FA Cup as captain. After the final whistle John Motson who was commentating for the BBC delivered his famous line: "The Crazy Gang have beaten the Culture Club."

Europe[]

Wimbledon were unable to compete in the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup, due to the ongoing ban on English teams from European competitions, following the actions of a group of Liverpool supporters in the 1985 European Cup Final Heysel disaster. At the time of the final, it was hoped that the ban would be rescinded, but after a number of incidents involving English fans during the 1988 European Championships, the FA withdrew their application for readmission.

Match details[]

14 May 1988
15:00 BST
Liverpool 0–1 Wimbledon Wembley Stadium, London
Attendance: 98,203
Referee: Brian Hill
Report Sanchez Goal 37'
Kit left arm shoulder stripes white stripes
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body whitecollar
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm shoulder stripes white stripes
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks 3 stripes white
Kit socks long
Liverpool
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body yellowshoulders
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts yellowsides
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks long
Wimbledon
GK 1 Flag of Zimbabwe Bruce Grobbelaar
RB 4 Flag of Scotland Steve Nicol
CB 2 Flag of Scotland Gary Gillespie
CB 6 Flag of Scotland Alan Hansen (c)
LB 3 Flag of England Gary Ablett
RM 9 Flag of Republic of Ireland Ray Houghton
CM 5 Flag of England Nigel Spackman Substituted off in the 74th minute 74'
CM 11 Flag of England Steve McMahon
LM 10 Flag of England John Barnes
CF 7 Flag of England Peter Beardsley
CF 8 Flag of Republic of Ireland John Aldridge Substituted off in the 64th minute 64'
Substitutes:
MF 12 Flag of England Craig Johnston Substituted on in the 64th minute 64'
MF 14 Flag of Denmark Jan Mølby Substituted on in the 74th minute 74'
Manager:
Flag of Scotland Kenny Dalglish
GK 1 Flag of England Dave Beasant (c)
RB 2 Flag of England Clive Goodyear
CB 5 Flag of Wales Eric Young
CB 6 Flag of England Andy Thorn
LB 3 Flag of Republic of Ireland Terry Phelan
CM 10 Flag of Northern Ireland Lawrie Sanchez
CM 4 Flag of Wales Vinnie Jones
RW 8 Flag of England Alan Cork Substituted off in the 56th minute 56'
LW 11 Flag of England Dennis Wise
CF 7 Flag of England Terry Gibson Substituted off in the 63rd minute 63'
CF 9 Flag of England John Fashanu
Substitutes:
DF 12 Flag of England John Scales Substituted on in the 63rd minute 63'
FW 14 Flag of England Laurie Cunningham Substituted on in the 56th minute 56'
Manager:
Flag of England Bobby Gould

Match rules

  • 90 minutes
  • 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary
  • Replay if scores still level
  • Two named substitutes
  • Maximum of two substitutions

External links[]

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Template:1987–88 in English football

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