1938 FA Cup final

After 29 minutes of extra time it was still 0–0 and BBC commentator Thomas Woodrooffe said "if there's a goal scored now, I'll eat my hat". Seconds later, Preston were awarded a penalty, from which George Mutch scored the winning goal; Woodrooffe kept his promise, though it was one made of cake and marzipan.{{cite book|title= War and the Media: Reportage and Propaganda, 1900-2003|author= Mark Connelly & David Welch|publisher= I.B. Tauris|date= 2005|isbn= 1-860-64959-9|page= 141}}{{cite news|title= The Joy of Six: FA Cup final goals|author= Scott Murray|date= 13 May 2011|work= The Guardian|url= https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2011/may/13/joy-of-six-fa-cup-final-goals|access-date=29 December 2016}} Bill Shankly (who played in that game for the Preston side) recalls that special moment in his autobiography from 1976: "The ball hit the bar, which was square then, took the paint off it, screamed into the middle of the goal and ran down the back of the net." And then adds: "The paint is on the ball to this day. I saw it again in 1971, when Liverpool reached the final and played Arsenal. When we were preparing for Wembley, Tommy Smith, who was the Preston captain in 1938, came to the training ground at Melwood and showed the ball to his namesake, Tommy Smith, the Liverpool captain in 1971."{{cite book|title= Shankly: My Story|author= John Roberts & Bill Shankly|publisher= Trinity Mirror Sport Media|date= 2009|isbn= 978-1906802066}}

This was the first FA Cup final to be broadcast on television, by the BBC. It was a repeat of the 1922 FA Cup Final. This time the scores were reversed but once again a penalty was needed to separate the two sides.{{cite book|title= Soccer For Dummies|author= Thomas Dunmore & Scott Murray|page= 27|isbn= 978-1-118-51065-0|publisher= John Wiley & Sons|date= 2013}}{{cite book|title= NHK Broadcasting Studies, Issue 2|author= Nihon Hōsō Kyōkai, NHK Hōsō Bunka Chōsa Kenkyūjo|publisher= NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute|date= 2003|page= 132}}

Three of the players who participated in the final (Andy Beattie and Bill Shankly of Preston and Eddie Boot of Huddersfield) would all manage Huddersfield within 20 years of this final.

The last surviving member of the winning team was Bobby Beattie, who died in September 2002 at the age of 86.

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|date=30 April 1938

|time=15:00 BST

|team1=Preston North End

|score=1–0

|aet=yes

|team2=Huddersfield Town

|report= Report

|goals1=Mutch {{goal|119|pen.}}

|goals2=

|stadium=Wembley Stadium, London

|attendance=93,497

|referee=A. Jewell (London)}}

|valign="top" width="50%"|

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{{col-begin}}

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{{Football box

| date = 8 Jan 1938

| event =

| round = 3rd Round

| time =

| team1 = Preston North End

| team2 = West Ham United

| score = 3 - 0

| aet =

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| stadium = Deepdale, Preston

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{{Football box

| date = 22 Jan 1938

| event =

| round = 4th Round

| time =

| team1 = Preston North End

| team2 = Leicester City

| score = 2 - 0

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| stadium = Deepdale, Preston

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{{Football box

| date = 12 Feb 1938

| event =

| round = 5th Round

| time =

| team1 = Arsenal

| team2 = Preston North End

| score = 0 - 1

| aet =

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| stadium = Highbury, London

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{{Football box

| date = 5 Mar 1938

| event =

| round = 6th Round

| time =

| team1 = Brentford

| team2 = Preston North End

| score = 0 - 3

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| stadium = Griffin Park, London

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{{Football box

| date = 26 Mar 1938

| event =

| round = Semi-final

| time =

| team1 = Preston North End

| team2 = Aston Villa

| score = 2 - 1

| aet =

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| stadium = Bramall Lane, Sheffield

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{{col-break}}

{{Football box

| date = 8 Jan 1938

| event =

| round = 3rd Round

| time =

| team1 = Huddersfield Town

| team2 = Hull City

| score = 3 - 1

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| stadium = Leeds Road, Huddersfield

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{{Football box

| date = 22 Jan 1938

| event =

| round = 4th Round

| time =

| team1 = Huddersfield Town

| team2 = Notts County

| score = 1 - 0

| aet =

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| stadium = Leeds Road, Huddersfield

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{{Football box

| date = 12 Feb 1938

| event =

| round = 5th Round

| time =

| team1 = Liverpool

| team2 = Huddersfield Town

| score = 0 - 1

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| stadium = Anfield, Liverpool

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{{Football box

| date = 5 Mar 1938

| event =

| round = 6th Round

| time =

| team1 = York City

| team2 = Huddersfield Town

| score = 0 - 0

| aet =

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| stadium = Bootham Crescent, York

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{{Football box

| date = 9 Mar 1938

| event =

| round = 6th Round Replay

| time =

| team1 = Huddersfield Town

| team2 = York City

| score = 2 - 1

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| stadium = Leeds Road, Huddersfield

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{{Football box

| date = 26 Mar 1938

| event =

| round = Semi-final

| time =

| team1 = Huddersfield Town

| team2 = Sunderland

| score = 3 - 1

| aet =

| goals1 =

| goals2 =

| stadium = Ewood Park, Blackburn

| attendance =

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{{col-end}}

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.sportingchronicle.com/FACUP/1938.html FA Cup Final lineups]

{{FA Cup Finals}}

{{1937–38 in English football}}

{{Preston North End F.C. matches}}

{{Huddersfield Town A.F.C. matches}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:1938 Fa Cup Final}}

Category:FA Cup finals

Final

FA Cup Final 1938

FA Cup Final 1938

FA Cup Final

FA Cup Final