FA Cup Special: Manchester United

FA Cup Cantona landscape

Ahead of the first ever all-Manchester FA Cup Final, we look at moments from Manchester United’s history in the competition via objects you can see on our galleries.


Charlie Roberts

Charlie arrived at Bank Street via Grimsby Town for the princely sum of £600: big money for 1904. It proved to be money very well spent. The centre-half would turn out for Manchester United for the best part of a decade, racking up over 300 appearances in that time.

Photo courtesy of Manchester United.

In 1908, he became the first player to captain United to major silverware, as Ernest Mangnall’s expensively-assembled squad ran away with the First Division title. The following year, Roberts led the team to an FA Cup Final for the first time in club history.

Star forward Sandy Turnbull was a doubt for the match, but Roberts purportedly suggested to his manager that it was a risk worth taking: Turnbull duly scored the only goal of the game against Bristol City, bringing the trophy back up to the North West.

A skilful defender, Roberts was an outlier in other ways, too. He wore his shorts above knee-length, in contravention of FA rules, and was a key figure within the Players’ Union, established alongside teammate Billy Meredith. Their strike action in 1909 over the FA’s implementation of a maximum wage cap briefly threatened to derail the start of the 1909-10 season.

The union would, in time, evolve to become the Professional Footballers’ Association, and would finally succeed in scrapping the wage cap in 1961.

Bobby Charlton

The golden-haired midfielder was one of the original Busby Babes, having signed professional terms in 1956. He was trusted enough by Busby to feature in a controversial FA Cup Final defeat to Aston Villa the following year, fast establishing himself as a key member of the first team.

Photo courtesy of Mirrorpix.

He was on board that fateful flight from Munich in February 1958, having scored two goals in the 3-3 draw at Red Star Belgrade. The ensuing runway crash would claim the lives of eight of his teammates, escaping with minor cuts to his head.

Just over a fortnight later, Bobby was still convalescing when United faced Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup, but made his playing return in the next round against West Bromwich Albion. An unlikely FA Cup Final triumph eluded him that year, Bolton Wanderers running out 2-0 winners, but Charlton would finally collect a winners’ medal at the third time of asking in 1963.

1958 Man Utd signed menu
A menu card signed by the Manchester United team in Belgrade, 1958.

Bobby would enjoy even more success for club and country in the following years, winning three championship titles and a European Cup with United, as well as lifting the Jules Rimet with England at Wembley. His individual brilliance was recognised by the FWA and France Football in 1966, making him the only player to have won the Footballer of the Year and the Ballon d’Or in the same year.

Eric Cantona

For many, Manchester United’s FA Cup Final triumph was all about the redemption of the king.

Eric Cantona had served an eight-month ban for assaulting a spectator following his dismissal at Crystal Palace, producing one of the most famous post-match press conferences of all time (all about seagulls and sardines). The enigmatic striker contemplated leaving England in the aftermath, but was convinced to stay at Old Trafford by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Despite missing the first two months of action, Cantona finished the league campaign as United’s top scorer, having found the net 14 times since October. The arc was to be completed at the national stadium in the country’s oldest cup competition, against old rivals Liverpool.

Wearing the armband in the absence of Steve Bruce, Cantona grabbed the game by the collar. His thumping volley was enough to separate the two sides, securing United’s ninth FA Cup triumph, as well as the king’s iconic legacy.

from moss side to marseille art of the game

The resurrection of Cantona’s career is best reflected in Michael Browne’s stunning artwork, The Art of the Game. It features Eric as a Christ-like figure, alongside some of ‘Fergie’s fledglings’ (and, of course, Sir Alex himself).

You can see this painting as part of Michael and Eric’s exhibition, From Moss Side to Marseille, on display until Sunday 18 June.

The oldest surviving FA Cup trophy

Like their cross-city rivals, United did get their hands on the silverware at the first time of asking (albeit five years after City’s maiden triumph).

As mentioned earlier, Ernest Mangnall’s men defeated Bristol City courtesy of a Sandy Turnbull goal. United were effectively forced to play with ten men after Vince Hayes suffered an injury: though the defender returned to the pitch after treatment, he did so as a forward, necessitating a tactical switch from Mangnall.

Both United and their opponents traditionally wore red as their home jerseys: as a result, the FA instructed both sides to wear a change kit. United opted for a white shirt with a red V-stripe, also featuring the Lancastrian red rose.

Man Utd shirt 1909

Coincidentally, the Red Devils wouldn’t be wearing their normal colours for their second FA Cup win in 1948, either: another kit clash, this time with Blackpool, meant that United had to wear blue for their big day out at Wembley.

By 1969, Manchester City had won four FA Cups to United’s three, but the latter would soon surpass their struggling rivals, winning the competition three times in the eighties and a further four times across the nineties.

At the time of writing, the Reds have currently won double the amount of FA Cups as their so-called “noisy neighbours”. Will they extend that lead on Saturday, or will City start to bridge the gap?