The 1879 FA Cup final was contested by Old Etonians and Clapham Rovers at the Kennington Oval in London. Old Etonians won by 1–0, the only goal scored by Charles Clerke.

Summary

Although Clapham dominated the early stages of the final, with Norman Bailey having two attempts on target, Herbert Whitfeld continued to run at the Clapham defenders with little assistance from his colleagues. After a goalless first-half, the only goal of the game came after 59 minutes, when Charles Clerke scored from close range following a run from Harry Goodhart. The old Etonians thus claimed the cup for the first time in what was considered to be "the poorest FA Cup Final to date".

Match details

Old Etonians1–0Clapham Rovers
Clerke 59'
Old EtoniansC. Rovers
Old Etonians: GK England John Purvis Hawtrey DF England Edward Christian DF England Lindsay Bury MF Scotland Hon. Arthur Kinnaird (C) MF EnglandEdgar Lubbock FW England Charles Clerke FW England Norman Pares FW England Harry Goodhart FW England Herbert Whitfeld FW England John Chevallier FW England Mark BeaufoyClapham Rovers: GK England Reginald Birkett DF England Robert Ogilvie DF England Edgar Field MF England Norman Bailey MF England James Prinsep FW England Frederick Rawson FW England Arthur J. Stanley FW England Stanley Scott FW England Herbert Bevington FW England Edward Growse FW England Cecil Keith-Falconer
Old Etonians:
GKEngland John Purvis Hawtrey
DFEngland Edward Christian
DFEngland Lindsay Bury
MFScotland Hon. Arthur Kinnaird (C)
MFEnglandEdgar Lubbock
FWEngland Charles Clerke
FWEngland Norman Pares
FWEngland Harry Goodhart
FWEngland Herbert Whitfeld
FWEngland John Chevallier
FWEngland Mark Beaufoy
Clapham Rovers:
GKEngland Reginald Birkett
DFEngland Robert Ogilvie
DFEngland Edgar Field
MFEngland Norman Bailey
MFEngland James Prinsep
FWEngland Frederick Rawson
FWEngland Arthur J. Stanley
FWEngland Stanley Scott
FWEngland Herbert Bevington
FWEngland Edward Growse
FWEngland Cecil Keith-Falconer

External links