Albion-villa-blues united for FA Cup glory in 1957
IT WAS A unique moment in football history – three teams with only a few miles between their home grounds were in the FA Cup semi-finals.
The three clubs were West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa and Birmingham City, while the interloper from outside the West Midlands was Manchester United.
The three local teams gathered together for a photograph to record the rare occasion. There are some famous faces in this picture – can you name the players and club officials?
Against
The Baggies and Villa were drawn against each other and their semi-final was played at Wolverhampton’s Molineux on March 23, 1957, in front of 55,649 fans.
Taking the field for Albion were: Jimmy Sanders, Don Howe, Jimmy Dudley, Ray Barlow, Frank Griffin, Ronnie Allen, Brian Whitehouse, Joe Kennedy, Len Millard, Derek Kevan and Roy Horobin.
Villa’s XI were: Nigel Sims, Peter Aldis, Stan Lynn, Jimmy Dugdale, Stan Crowther, Pat Saward, Les Smith, Peter Mcparland, Johnny Dixon, Billy Myerscough and Jackie Sewell.
Albion were the fancied team and took a 2-0 lead, thanks to a brace from
Brian Whitehouse, but Villa fought back, Peter Mcparland scoring two goals and the match finished all square.
The replay took place on March 28 at Birmingham’s St Andrew’s, with 58,067 in attendance.
Both teams fielded the same players but this time Villa were victorious, winning 1-0 with a goal fron Billy Myerscough. The turning point of the match came when Ronnie Allen
collided with Jimmy Dugdale and was knocked out cold. There were no substitutes, so after 30 minutes off the field Allen returned to play but was far from fit.
Faced off
Birmingham City and Manchester United faced off at Hillsborough in front a crowd of 65,107.
Playing for Blue were: Gil Merrick, Jeff Hall,
Ken Green, Johnny Watts, Trevor Smith, Roy Warhurst, Gordon Astall, Noel Kinsey, Eddy Brown, Peter Murphy and Alex Govan.
The Manchester United squad was: Ray Wood, Roger Byrne, Bill Foukes, Jackie Blanchflower, Eddie Colman, Duncan Edwards, Bobby Charlton, David Pegg, Johnny Berry, Dennis Violett and Billy Whelan.
Villa and United played
the final at Wembley on May 4, with a crowd of 99,225. Villa fielded the same XI as in the semifinal, but United swapped Tommy Taylor for Dennis Violett.
Collision
Today the match is remembered for the early collision between Peter Mcparland and Ray Wood that left the United goalkeeper unconscious with a broken cheekbone. Jackie Blanchflower then deputised between the sticks and Wood eventually returned to the field. He played outfield before going back in goal for the last seven minutes.
Mcparland went on to score for Villa in the 68th and 73rd minutes, while Taylor got one back for United on 83 minutes.
Villa’s captain Johnny Dixon then accepted the trophy from the Queen.