1904 FA Cup final facts for kids
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The match programme cover
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| Event | 1903–04 FA Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 23 April 1904 | ||||||
| Venue | Crystal Palace, London | ||||||
| Referee | A. J. Barker | ||||||
| Attendance | 61,374 | ||||||
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The 1904 FA Cup final was an exciting football match. It took place between Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City on April 23, 1904. The game was played at Crystal Palace in London. This match was the big final for England's main cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, also known as the FA Cup. It was the 33rd FA Cup final ever.
Both teams had to win four games to reach this final match. Manchester City was a top-tier team in the First Division. They were hoping to win both the league and the cup. Bolton Wanderers was a team from the Second Division, which is the league below the First Division. Most people thought Manchester City would win. The match was very close, with strong defense from both sides. Manchester City won 1–0. The only goal was scored by Billy Meredith. Some Bolton fans thought he was offside, meaning he was in an illegal position. This victory was Manchester City's first big trophy in football history.
Contents
Getting to the Final Match
The 1904 FA Cup final was held at Crystal Palace. This was the tenth time the final was played at this famous venue. Neither Manchester City nor Bolton Wanderers had ever won the FA Cup before. Bolton had reached the final in 1894, but they lost to Notts County with a score of 4–1.
Manchester City's Journey
Manchester City played against teams from the top division in almost every round. The only exception was Woolwich Arsenal, who were in the Second Division. In the first round, City beat Sunderland 3–2 at their home ground, Hyde Road. They then won 2–0 against Arsenal.
A huge crowd of 30,022 fans watched their quarter-final game against Middlesbrough. That was a record crowd for the club! The game ended in a 0–0 draw, so they had to play again. City won the replay 3–1. This set up a semi-final match against The Wednesday. Manchester City won that game 3–0 with two goals from Turnbull and one from Meredith.
Bolton Wanderers' Journey
Bolton's cup journey started a bit slowly. They needed a replay to beat a non-league team called Reading. After that, they had a strong 4–1 win against Southampton. This earned them a spot in the quarter-finals against Sheffield United.
As a Second Division team, Bolton was not expected to win against Sheffield United, especially since Sheffield United was very strong at home. But Bolton surprised everyone! They won 2–0 with goals from Sam Marsh and Billy Yenson. Sam Marsh had scored in every round of the competition up to this point. In the semi-final, Bolton beat Derby County 1–0, which sent them to the final.
Travel and Preparations
Before this final, no two teams from Lancashire had ever played each other in the FA Cup final. Lancashire was a very important area for football back then. About 30,000 fans from the region traveled to London for the match. This caused a lot of excitement and made the newspapers report on record train travel from north to south. Many fans even slept on train platforms because there was no other place to stay.
The Manchester Industrial Boys Band played music, making the atmosphere very lively. Both teams stayed in West Norwood, a London suburb close to Crystal Palace. Manchester City arrived first, followed by Bolton Wanderers. A newspaper described the Manchester City players as very relaxed, like they were on holiday.
Most experts thought Manchester City would win. They were doing very well in the First Division. Bolton was a mid-table Second Division team, and their best forward was injured. Both teams played with a 2–3–5 formation, which was common at the time.
The Big Match Day
The match happened on a nice day, with about 62,000 people watching. Important people like the Prime Minister, Arthur Balfour, were there. Famous cricketers also attended. Manchester City's captain, Billy Meredith, led his team onto the field first. Bolton followed shortly after. Manchester City won the coin toss and chose to play with the wind behind them in the first half.
The beginning of the game was quite even. One newspaper said that "For some time there was little to choose between the rivals." But Manchester City seemed more organized and skillful.
The Goal
About twenty minutes into the game, George Livingstone passed the ball to the right wing. It got past a Bolton player and reached Billy Meredith. Meredith dribbled past another defender and shot the ball to the left of the goalkeeper, scoring the first and only goal! Some people who supported Bolton, like a former Bolton secretary, said the goal was offside. However, the Bolton players did not complain to the referee.
After the goal, one very excited Manchester City fan ran onto the field. Police escorted him away, but he was allowed back to watch the rest of the game. The newspaper said the police were impressed by how much he loved his team!
Second Half Action
Bolton had most of the ball in the second half, except for a ten-minute period. But Manchester City's defense played incredibly well. Herbert Burgess, a City defender, was praised for his amazing performance. Another newspaper, however, said that Burgess played too physically. Bolton tried hard to score, but they couldn't break through City's defense. Bolton's best chance came in the last five minutes, but the shot just missed. The match ended 1–0, making Manchester City the FA Cup champions for the first time!
Match Details
| 23 April 1904 3:20 PM GMT |
Manchester City | 1–0 | Bolton Wanderers | Crystal Palace, London Attendance: 61,374 Referee: A. J. Barker |
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Meredith  23' |
      Manchester City
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Match rules
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After the Match
Manchester City's captain, Billy Meredith, received the FA Cup trophy. He got it from the Prime Minister at the time, Arthur Balfour, who was a supporter of the club. Another important person, Alfred Lyttelton, gave a speech. He praised both teams for their efforts. Lyttelton, who used to play football himself, talked about how much the game had changed. He said the final showed how important teamwork was, unlike in his day when "each man played for himself."
Most people at the game behaved well. There were only a few minor issues reported.
Manchester City did not go straight back to Manchester. They went to Liverpool because their last league game was scheduled for the next day against Everton. At this point, Manchester City still had a chance to win the league title. However, they lost 1–0 to Everton. This loss meant that The Wednesday became the league champions.
The team finally arrived in Manchester that evening. They traveled to the Town Hall to start their victory parade. The parade went through several streets, and many people lined the route to cheer for their champions. There were five times as many people as had attended a recent visit by the Prince and Princess of Wales!
