David Seaman (left) and David O'Leary
May 20, 1993: For the last time, before penalty kicks replaced it as the way to decide one that ended in a draw, the FA Cup Final is replayed. For the 1st time, the same teams that had played in the League Cup Final do it again in the FA Cup Final. And, as with the League Cup Final, it goes to extra time, and the winning goal is scored by an unlikely hero.
The Football League Cup, or just "the League Cup," was started in 1958. Yorkshire team Sheffield Wednesday won it in 1991. It was their 1st major trophy since the 1935 FA Cup. They hadn't won the Football League Division One since 1930. North London’s Arsenal had lost the League Cup Final in 1968 and 1969, but had won it in 1987.
In the 1993 League Cup Final, Arsenal, managed by George Graham, beat Wednesday, 2-1. John Harkes of Kearny, New Jersey became the 1st American ever to score at Wembley Stadium, doing so for Wednesday in only the 8th minute. But Paul Merson scored in the 20th, and Steve Morrow, normally a substitute, scored in the 68th to win it. Oddly, during the celebration, his arm was broken.
Both teams reached the FA Cup Final. For Arsenal, it was particularly sweet, since, in the Semifinal, they avenged a loss to their North London neighbors, Tottenham Hotspur, in the Semifinal 2 years earlier. And the coincidences kept on coming: In the other Semifinal, Wednesday also beat their arch-rivals, Sheffield United.
The Final was held on May 15, a Saturday afternoon. Ian Wright scored for Arsenal in the 20th minute, and David Hirst scored for Wednesday in the 61st. Extra time could not settle it, and so a replay would, on the following Thursday night.
Wright opened the scoring again, this time in the 34th. Chris Waddle, a former Tottenham player who always seemed to raise his game against Arsenal, equalized for Wednesday in the 68th. Regulation could not find a winner. As extra time wound down, it looked like the game would go to penalties, with Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman and Wednesday's Chris Woods as the only thing between their teams and defeat.
But in the 119th minute, Paul Merson sent a corner into the box. Andy Linighan, a 30-year-old journeyman from Hartlepool, County Durham, headed the ball past Woods, and Arsenal had become the 1st English team to win both domestic cups, "the Cup Double."
It was the 722nd and last game for Arsenal for centreback David O'Leary, and it remains a club record.
For Wednesday, Harkes became the 1st American to play in an FA Cup Final. It would take until 2004 for an American to play on the winning side of one. This, too, would be a New Jerseyan, Tim Howard of North Brunswick and Manchester United.
It would take until 2022 for a 2nd occurrence of the same teams that had played in the League Cup Final to also play in the FA Cup Final: Liverpool and Chelsea. Both Finals ended 0-0, and Liverpool won both on penalties.
*
May 20, 1993 was a Thursday. Football was out of season. One game was played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Islanders, 2-1 at the Nassau Coliseum. Guy Carbonneau scored the winning goal, 12:34 into overtime. This was the 8th, and the 2nd in a row, out of 11 overtime games the Canadiens would win in these Playoffs, on their way to winning the Cup.
Two games were played in the NBA Playoffs. The Phoenix Suns beat the San Antonio Spurs, 102-100 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio, in Game 6, to clinch a berth the Western Conference Finals. And the Houston Rockets beat the Seattle SuperSonics, 103- 90 at The Summit in Houston. (The arena has since been converted into the Central Campus of the Lakewood Church, Dr. Joel Osteen's "megachurch.") That was Game 6, but Seattle won Game 7, to advance to the West Finals. But Phoenix won. And then lost the NBA Finals to the Chicago Bulls.
And, since Thursday is often a travel day in Major League Baseball, there were 9 games played, instead of a full slate, which would then have been 14:
* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-3 at Fenway Park in Boston.
* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Montreal Expos, 9-3 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Pete Incaviglia and Darren Daulton hit home runs, in support of Curt Schilling, who went the distance for the win.
* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Cal Ripken went 0-for-3.
* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 6-3 at Busch Memorial Stadium.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 6-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium.
* The Oakland Athletics beat the Kansas City Royals, 4-1 at Royals Stadium in Kansas City. (It was renamed Kauffman Stadium later that season.) Mark Gubicza, in his only season as a reliever instead of a starter, collapsed in the top of the 12th inning: WIth 1 out, he walked Rickey Henderson and Terry Steinbach, and gave up an RBI triple to Dale Sveum and an RBI single to Kevin Seitzer. George Brett, in his last season, went 1-for-6.
* The Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers, 7-4 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-4.
* The San Diego Padres beat the Colorado Rockies, 5-4 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. Dante Bichette hit a solo home run in the top of the 11th inning. But in the bottom of the 11th, Gary Sheffield singled, and Fred McGriff hit a 2-run homer to win it.
* And the San Francisco Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 6-1 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Barry Bonds went 1-for-3 with a walk.
No comments:
Post a Comment