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1973 FA Cup final

Field	Value
title	1973 FA Cup final
image	Old Wembley Stadium (external view).jpg
image_size	200
event	[1972–73 FA Cup](1972-73-fa-cup)
team1	Leeds United
team1score	0
team2	Sunderland
team2score	1
date	5 May 1973
stadium	Wembley Stadium
city	London
referee	Ken Burns
attendance	100,000
previous	[1972](1972-fa-cup-final)
next	[1974](1974-fa-cup-final)

The 1973 FA Cup final was the 92nd final of the FA Cup. It took place on 5 May 1973 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between Leeds United, the cup holders and one of the dominant teams in English football at the time, and Sunderland, then playing in the Second Division.

In one of the biggest shocks in the history of the competition, Sunderland won 1–0 to become the first Second Division side to lift the Cup since West Bromwich Albion in 1931. It was Sunderland's last Cup win for almost 50 years until the team won the EFL Trophy in 2021, and also their last major trophy as of 2025. Sunderland's team were the only FA Cup winners of the 20th century not to field any full internationals, although some of their players were capped later.

Road to Wembley

Match summary

Sunderland established their tactics immediately from the kick-off and refused to be intimidated by their more illustrious opponents, tackling fiercely and defiantly with an unremitting determination. Leeds looked anxious, lacking their usual composure. The match itself was decided by two crucial moments that would be talked about for years to come.

After 32 minutes Sunderland took the lead when Vic Halom chested down a corner from Billy Hughes. Assisted by Dave Watson between two defenders, the deflected high ball was controlled by Ian Porterfield who shot home from 12 yards. Leeds, shocked, battled back with predictable determination. Sunderland's goalkeeper Jimmy Montgomery was outstanding, defying Leeds with a string of fine saves and preserving his team's lead.

The turning point of the match came midway through the second half. Montgomery dived to palm away a close range header from Trevor Cherry. It fell into the path of Lorimer who blasted goalward from 10 yards but Montgomery managed to divert the ball on to the underside of the bar and Malone scrambled the ball clear. The save is considered one of the greatest of all time and has been compared with that made by England's Gordon Banks in the 1970 FIFA World Cup match against Brazil.

The North East team survived more pressure from Leeds to secure a notable upset.

The 1973 showpiece is the last FA Cup final to be played with an orange ball.

Sunderland's FA Cup record, "Sunderland All the Way", was recorded by comedian Bobby Knoxall.

Match details

15:00 BST

{{Football kit	pattern_la =	pattern_b = _whitecollar_trineck	pattern_ra =	leftarm = FFFFFF	body = FFFFFF	rightarm = FFFFFF	shorts = FFFFFF	socks = FFFFFF	title = Leeds United	{{Football kit	pattern_la = _red_stripes	pattern_b = _whitestripes	pattern_ra = _red_stripes	pattern_sh =	pattern_so = _whitetop	leftarm = FFFFFF	body = FF0000	rightarm = FFFFFF	shorts = 000000	socks = FF0000	title = Sunderland

ENG Don Revie

ENG Bob Stokoe

References

(24 July 2014). "Jim Montgomery's Save Discussed By Alan Hansen & Peter Reid".
(7 May 1973). "Dream comes true for Sunderland". Glasgow Herald (page 4).
"1973 FA Cup Rune". Roker Roar.com.
Tim Booler and Jessica Forster. (2009-07-21). "Comic legend Bobby Knoxall dies". Sunderland Echo.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1972–73-fa-cup fa-cup-finals sunderland-a.f.c.-matches leeds-united-f.c.-matches sports-events-at-wembley-stadium 1973-in-sport-in-london may-1973-sports-events-in-the-united-kingdom

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