1957 FA Cup Final

Event

1956–57 FA Cup

Aston Villa	Manchester United

2	1

Date

4 May 1957

Venue

Wembley Stadium, London

Referee

F. Coultas

Attendance

99,225

← 1956

1958 →

The 1957 FA Cup Final was a football match played on 4 May 1957 at Wembley Stadium. The match was contested by Aston Villa and Manchester United. Villa won 2–1, with both of their goals scored by Peter McParland. Tommy Taylor got United's goal.

The final was marred by a collision after only six minutes between Villa forward Peter McParland and United goalkeeper Ray Wood, which left Wood unconscious with a broken cheekbone. Wood left the pitch and Jackie Blanchflower took over in goal for United. Wood eventually rejoined the game in an outfield position as a virtual passenger before returning to goal for the last seven minutes of the game.

It was Villa's first major trophy for 37 years.

Villa's victory gave them their seventh FA Cup title, a record number at the time. Villa have not been able to add to that total since, which has been passed by three clubs — including Manchester United, who have eleven wins. They have reached the final twice since then: in 2000, when they lost to Chelsea; and in 2015, when they lost to Arsenal.

Six of the 11 players who took to the field for United in this game lost their lives in the Munich air disaster nine months later; as did a further two players who did not appear in the game, while two others (who both appeared in the game) were injured to such an extent that they never played again. The only United players who appeared in the final a year later were full-back Bill Foulkes and forward Bobby Charlton. The death of Foulkes in November 2013 leaves Charlton as the last surviving player from the United team in the 1957 FA Cup Final.

In December 2007, BBC Four's Timeshift series screened a documentary, ‘A Game of Two Eras’, which compared the 1957 final with its 2007 counterpart.

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