April 27, 1946: Derby County Break the Curse

April 27, 1946: After 6 seasons of cancellations due to World War II, England's Football Association brings its FA Cup tournament to a conclusion, with the Final at the old Wembley Stadium in West London.

In 1890, Derby County Football Club (and that's pronounced "DAR-bee, not "DER-bee"), with the understanding that the American game of baseball was becoming popular in Derbyshire, in the East Midlands, moved into a new home field that was named the Baseball Ground. Baseball did not remain popular for long, but, as with the American baseball stadium named the Polo Grounds, the name stuck.

But a group of Romani, or "Gypsies" as they were usually called until recent times (that word is now considered a slur), were forced to move their camp so that the stadium could be built. So legend had it that they had put a curse on DCFC, that they would never win the FA Cup -- at the time, considered more important than the championship of the relatively new Football League.

(A similar story surrounds Birmingham City Football Club, except that it was limited to 100 years, from 1906 to 2006. If so, it worked. In 2011, they won the League Cup, for their one and only major trophy. But, through the 2021-22 season, they've still never won the FA Cup.)

From 1896 to 1903, in 8 seasons, led by the top English scorer of his generation, Steve Bloomer, Derby got to the Semifinals of the FA Cup 6 times, and the Final 3 times, but lost them all. They didn't win the League, either. They didn't get back to the FA Cup Final until 1946, against South-East London team Charlton Athletic. In preparation, a representative to the club went to meet with Romani, in an attempt to lift the curse.

The game was scoreless until the 85th minute. Bert Turner, a Welsh right half for Charlton, tried to clear the ball away from the goal, but deflected it into his own net. Shortly after the restart, Charlton were awarded a free kick, and Turner scored for his own side -- deflected off a Derby player, but credited as a goal to Turner. This made him the 1st player ever to score for both sides in an FA Cup Final. As he was a little short of his 37th birthday, it also made him the oldest player to score in one, a record he still holds.

Just before the final whistle, Jackie Stamps attempted a shot for Derby. It missed, but the ball burst. That was taken by some people as a sign that the curse had been lifted. The game went to extra time, and, with a new ball, Peter Doherty, an inside left from Northern Ireland, put Derby ahead. Stamps scored twice in extra time.

Derby won, 4-1, and finally had the Cup, 56 years after the curse was supposedly cast. Captain Jack Nicholas received the Cup from King George VI. The King, looking visibly aged after The War, and very tired (to be fair, the game did go to extra time), was accompanied by his wife, Queen Elizabeth; their 20-year-old daughter, Princess Elizabeth; and his uncle, the Earl of Athlone, who had been Governor-General of Canada during The War.

Despite their Football League titles of 1972 and 1975, this remains the only FA Cup they have ever won. Manager Brian Clough brought them to glory in the early 1970s, but in his long career as a player and a manager, he never won that trophy.

Charlton would be back the next season, beating Burnley in the Final. That remains the only major trophy the Addicks have ever won.

Captain Nicholas lived until 1977, poor Turner until 1981, Doherty until 1990, Stamps until 1991. Reg Harrison, the outside right, was the last surviving Derby player from this game, living until 2020.

In 1997, Derby County left the Baseball Ground, and moved into a new home, Pride Park.

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April 27, 1946, like every other FA Cup Final day, was a Saturday. These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Washington Senators, 9-0 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Spurgeon "Spud" Chandler pitched a 3-hit shutout. Joe Gordon went 3-for-4 with a home run, a walk and 3 RBIs. Joe DiMaggio went 1-for-5 with an RBI.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5-2 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.

The Detroit Tigers beat the Cleveland Indians, 5-4 at Briggs Stadium (later Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. Hank Greenberg singled Jimmy Outlaw home in the bottom of the 11th inning.

* The St. Louis Browns beat the Chicago White Sox, 2-0 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Sam Zoldak pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 4-0 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Max Lanier pitched a 4-hit shutout. Stan Musial went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The New York Giants and their arch-rivals, the Brooklyn Dodgers, were rained out at the Polo Grounds. The game was made up on August 8. The Dodgers won, 3-1. Pete Reiser tripled Dick Whitman and Augie Galan home in the top of the 10th inning. Reiser had also homered earlier.

* The Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Athletics were rained out at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. The game was made up on August 15. The A's won, 5-3. Pete Suder hit a home run. Sam Chapman went 4-for-4 with 4 RBIs. Ted Williams went 0-for-4.

* And the Boston Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies were rained out at Braves Field in Boston. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on August 15. The Phillies won the opener, 15-11. Johnny Wyrostek went 5-for-6 with 3 RBIs. Del Ennis and Roy Hughes each went 3-for-6 with an RBI. Jim Tabor hit a grand slam. For the Braves, Don Padgett went 2-for-6 with a home run and 6 RBIs.

The Braves won the nightcap, 3-1. Wyrostek went 3-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. His totals on the day: 8-for-10 with a walk and 4 RBIs.

April 26, 1947: Charlton Athletic's Moment of Glory

Captain Don Welsh holds the Cup

April 26, 1947: Charlton Athletic of South London defeat Lancashire club Burnley, 1-0 at the original Wembley Stadium in London, and win the FA Cup.

Charlton had lost to Derby County in the previous year's Final. This time, both goalkeepers, Sam Bartram of Charlton and George Strong of Burnley, were superb, and kept the score 0-0 through the 90 minutes. In extra time, in the 114th minute, Chris Duffy, a 28-year-old outside left from Scotland, scored the game's only goal.

Charlton Captain Don Welsh -- despite his name, from Manchester, England, not Wales -- received the Cup from Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, filling in for his brother, King George VI.

It remains Charlton's only major trophy. They finished 2nd in the First Division in 1937, 4th in 1938, and 3rd in 1939, but World War II stalled their momentum. They were relegated to the Second Division in 1957, and the Third in 1972. They got back to the Second in 1975, and the First in 1986. By that point, the club and its stadium, The Valley, were owned by different groups, and the club's ownership moved them to Selhurst Park, as tenants of Crystal Palace.

It took until 1988 for the team's owners to buy The Valley, 1990 to get improvements for the stadium approved, and 1992 for it to reopen. They were back in the first division, now named the Premier League, in 1998-99, were relegated, then got promoted again. In 2004, with The Valley fully converted into an all-seater modern stadium, they finished 7th in the Premier League, and even dealt Arsenal's "Invincibles" one of their 12 draws. But they got relegated again in 2007, and haven't been back in the Premier League since.

Duffy lived until 1978, Bartram until 1981, Welsh until 1990. Right winger Peter Croker was the last surviving member of the 1947 "Addicks," living until 2011.

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April 26, 1947, like all FA Cup Final days, was a Saturday. Elsewhere in English soccer, Arsenal, the team I would one day support, beat Lincolnshire team Grimsby Town, 5-3 at the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury, in North London. Arsenal finished 13th in the Football League, 16 points behind Liverpool, and were knocked out of the FA Cup by West London team Chelsea in the 3rd Round. The next season, though, Arsenal would win the League title.

American football was out of season. Basketball season had ended 4 days earlier, when the Philadelphia Warriors beat the Chicago Stags to win the 1st Championship of the league that would become the NBA. Hockey season had ended 7 days earlier, when the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens for the Stanley Cup.

And these baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Washington Senators, 3-1 at Yankee Stadium. Don Johnson went the distance for the win. Charlie Keller hit a home run. Joe DiMaggio went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers beat their arch-rivals, the New York Giants, 7-3 at Ebbets Field. Kirby Higbe left after 2 innings, and Vic Lombardi pitched the rest of the way for the win, outpitching Bill Voiselle. Gene Hermanski went 2-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBIs. Dixie Walker went 4-for-4 with a walk and 2 RBIs. Jackie Robinson went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox, 5-2 at Fenway Park in Boston. The A's scored 4 runs in the top of the 9th to win it. Ted Williams went 0-for-2 with 2 walks.

* The Boston Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-1 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Detroit Tigers, 6-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Bob Feller pitched a 3-hit shutout, outpitching Hal Newhouser.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3-2 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Frankie Baumholtz went 3-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk. For the Bucs, Hank Greenberg went 1-for-4. Ralph Kiner did not play.

* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-1 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Bob Chipman outpitched Harry Brecheen. Andy Pafko hit a home run for the Cubs, and Del Rice hit one for the Cards. Stan Musial went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* And the Chicago White Sox beat the St. Louis Browns, 2-0 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Thornton Lee pitched a 2-hit shutout. Luke Appling went 2-for-4.