On This Day 26th April 1969: FA Cup Final.

[Big Swifty]

Just look at the ticket price 12s 6d, starting price this year is £45.

Yes, I had a ticket priced at 12/6d, but had to pay £5 for it to get it and felt that I had been massively overcharged (£5 was a lot of money then).
When I got to Wembley I found I was behind the goal at the Leicester fans' end. I had to suppress my delight when Neil Young scored (at the far end).
What no one ever mentions is that King Colin missed a sitter at my end, and I had a perfect view of it. Tony Coleman put in a perfect cross from the left, and Colin had a free header about 8 or 10 yards out bang in front of the goal, and he put it straight at Peter Shilton.

 

[Lavinda Past]

Early start after a sleepless night. Brand new red and black scarf. Ticket safety pinned into my jacket by my mam so I wouldn't lose it. ("I'm 14 mam, I won't lose it"...). Meet my mate at the coach stop, and find that his mam has done exactly the same.
Picked up in Burnage by Fingland's coach, sandwiches and crisps were all eaten before we got to Lymm corner.
Seemed to take ages to get to the services, where all our spending money was quickly swallowed up.
I remember seeing Wembley for the first time... it was spectacular. We walked around the outside of the whole stadium. No bother from Leicester fans or jobsworth stewards etc. Just a friendly day out.
The match was forgettable. Apart from Nelly's goal and the lap of honour, there wasn't much I remember.
I must have slept all the way home.
Newcastle 12 months earlier, Wembley again less than 12 months after... The stuff of every schoolboy's dreams. There was no way it could ever get better than that....

Or could it...?

:-)

 

[Shirley]

I ended up in that fountain in Trafalgar Square IIRC…

 

[Gray]

Yes, I had a ticket priced at 12/6d, but had to pay £5 for it to get it and felt that I had been massively overcharged (£5 was a lot of money then).
When I got to Wembley I found I was behind the goal at the Leicester fans' end. I had to suppress my delight when Neil Young scored (at the far end).
What no one ever mentions is that King Colin missed a sitter at my end, and I had a perfect view of it. Tony Coleman put in a perfect cross from the left, and Colin had a free header about 8 or 10 yards out bang in front of the goal, and he put it straight at Peter Shilton.

£1 in 1969 has risen to £16.69 with inflation. So the £45 cheapest ticket is a complete rip off.

 

[Corky]

£1 in 1969 has risen to £16.69 with inflation. So the £45 cheapest ticket is a complete rip off.

The club let the majority of the tickets out of the backdoor for the game, sold with train packages at greatly inflated prices for example. Those who had collected sufficient tokens who had queued up were turned away at Maine Road.

As well as the guy above paying £5, you could "pay at the gate" £5 too, everyone was on the take.

 

[christened at st marks]

Stood behind the goal aged 15

 

[derek]

My Dad had died that year, when I got up at 5am to go to Wembley, I did not have a ticket and was hoping to get one at the ground. My mother had left me a note with my sandwiches with a £% note, she wrote my Dad would have wanted me to see the game and to make sure I got a ticket. I paid £5 for a 12 and 6 ticket in the City end , Brings a tear to my eye thinking about my Mother was so thoughtful to give me the £5.

Great day and memories I was shocked at how dirty the stadium looked l has I walked down Wembley Way.

 

[invisibleandalone]

We won the European Cup Winners Cup the following year in Vienna and the match was not televised in the UK. The TV companies showed the FA Cup Final reply between Leeds & Chelsea instead.

Absolutely disgusting.

Brian Clough really gave it to all the other pundits at half time. When the other pundits were blabbing on about how the FA cup was going. He shut them all up when he said " excuse me, there is a far far more important game going on tonight and not a one of you have mentioned it. How are City doing in that European final"
You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Really admired him since that.

 

[kippaxkid74]

My dad went with my grandad. I still have the ticket stub. I grew up hearing mum moan they didn't take her (got married in 67).... But me and mum made up for it with our own trips - was so proud to take her in 2011 and all the times since.

Four generations have seen city in the fa cup final - my grandad (56 and 69), dad (69), me (2011, 2013, 2019, 2023, 2024), and my son (2023, 2024). And my mum did 15 Wembley trips with me inc 3 fa cup finals...

Boy i've turned this post into a sob story/life story, sorry.
It's just it's 5 years next week since my dad died, a week after the 50 year anniversary of this match.
And in 7 weeks it will be a year since i lost mum, and here i am repeating the very emotional trip last year - same hotel same team (and same result hopefully). It's all a bit of a headfuck.. I miss her.

Anyway, happy anniversary to the 69 final - i grew up loving our history, brilliant team :)

 

[xgorton]

My first final aged 17 with my then girlfriend Sue,we left at midnight on the Friday on Connelys coach from Gorton Hyde road near the Plough pub.I also had to send the tokens and the front covers from our away games from that season,also I put a note in asking for an extra ticket for my wife and yes I was sent the 2 tickets.We did eventually get married but it only lasted a few years,I wonder if she still remembers that cup final day ?