The 1937–38 FA Cup was the 63rd staging of the world's oldest football cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup. Preston North End won the competition for the second time, beating Huddersfield Town 1–0 after extra time in the final at Wembley.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | England Wales |
| Defending champions | Sunderland |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Preston North End (2nd title) |
| Runner-up | Huddersfield Town |
Matches were scheduled to be played at the stadium of the team named first on the date specified for each round, which was always a Saturday. Some matches, however, might be rescheduled for other days if there were clashes with games for other competitions or the weather was inclement. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played, a replay would take place at the stadium of the second-named team later the same week. If the replayed match was drawn further replays would be held until a winner was determined. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played in a replay, a 30-minute period of extra time would be played.
Calendar
| Round | Date |
|---|---|
| Extra preliminary round | Saturday 4 September 1937 |
| Preliminary round | Saturday 18 September 1937 |
| First round qualifying | Saturday 2 October 1937 |
| Second round qualifying | Saturday 16 October 1937 |
| Third round qualifying | Saturday 30 October 1937 |
| Fourth round qualifying | Saturday 13 November 1937 |
| First round proper | Saturday 27 November 1937 |
| Second round proper | Saturday 11 December 1937 |
| Third round proper | Saturday 8 January 1938 |
| Fourth round proper | Saturday 22 January 1938 |
| Fifth round proper | Saturday 12 February 1938 |
| Sixth round proper | Saturday 5 March 1938 |
| Semi-Finals | Saturday 26 March 1938 |
| Final | Saturday 30 April 1938 |
First round proper
At this stage 41 clubs from the Football League Third Division North and South joined the 25 non-league clubs having come through the qualifying rounds. Chester, Millwall and Notts County were given a bye to the third round. To make the number of matches up, non-league Dulwich Hamlet and Walthamstow Avenue were given byes to this round. 34 matches were scheduled to be played on Saturday, 27 November 1937. Nine were drawn and went to replays in the following midweek fixture, with one of these going to a second replay.
Second round proper
The matches were played on Saturday, 11 December 1937, with two matches postponed until the 15th. Four matches were drawn, with replays taking place in the following midweek fixture.
Third round proper
The 44 First and Second Division clubs entered the competition at this stage, along with Chester, Millwall and Notts County. The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 8 January 1938. Seven matches were drawn and went to replays, with one of these requiring a second replay to settle the fixture.
Fourth round proper
The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 22 January 1938. Four games were drawn and went to replays.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chesterfield | 3–2 | Burnley | 22 January 1938 |
| 2 | Preston North End | 2–0 | Leicester City | 22 January 1938 |
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 1–3 | Middlesbrough | 22 January 1938 |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 4–0 | Blackpool | 22 January 1938 |
| 5 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1–2 | Arsenal | 22 January 1938 |
| 6 | Luton Town | 2–1 | Swindon Town | 22 January 1938 |
| 7 | Everton | 0–1 | Sunderland | 22 January 1938 |
| 8 | Sheffield United | 1–1 | Liverpool | 22 January 1938 |
| Replay | Liverpool | 1–0 | Sheffield United | 26 January 1938 |
| 9 | Manchester City | 3–1 | Bury | 22 January 1938 |
| 10 | Barnsley | 2–2 | Manchester United | 22 January 1938 |
| Replay | Manchester United | 1–0 | Barnsley | 26 January 1938 |
| 11 | Brentford | 2–1 | Portsmouth | 22 January 1938 |
| 12 | Bradford Park Avenue | 1–1 | Stoke City | 22 January 1938 |
| Replay | Stoke City | 1–2 | Bradford Park Avenue | 26 January 1938 |
| 13 | Huddersfield Town | 1–0 | Notts County | 22 January 1938 |
| 14 | Charlton Athletic | 2–1 | Leeds United | 22 January 1938 |
| 15 | New Brighton | 0–0 | Tottenham Hotspur | 22 January 1938 |
| Replay | Tottenham Hotspur | 5–2 | New Brighton | 26 January 1938 |
| 16 | York City | 3–2 | West Bromwich Albion | 22 January 1938 |
Fifth round proper
The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 12 February 1938. There were two replays, of which one went to a second replay.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chesterfield | 2–2 | Tottenham Hotspur | 12 February 1938 |
| Replay | Tottenham Hotspur | 2–1 | Chesterfield | 16 February 1938 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 0–1 | Huddersfield Town | 12 February 1938 |
| 3 | Sunderland | 1–0 | Bradford Park Avenue | 12 February 1938 |
| 4 | Luton Town | 1–3 | Manchester City | 12 February 1938 |
| 5 | Brentford | 2–0 | Manchester United | 12 February 1938 |
| 6 | Charlton Athletic | 1–1 | Aston Villa | 12 February 1938 |
| Replay | Aston Villa | 2–2 | Charlton Athletic | 16 February 1938 |
| Replay | Aston Villa | 4–1 | Charlton Athletic | 21 February 1938 |
| 7 | Arsenal | 0–1 | Preston North End | 12 February 1938 |
| 8 | York City | 1–0 | Middlesbrough | 12 February 1938 |
Sixth round proper
The four quarter-final ties were scheduled to be played on Saturday, 5 March 1938. There was one replay, in the Huddersfield Town–York City match.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aston Villa | 3–2 | Manchester City | 5 March 1938 |
| 2 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0–1 | Sunderland | 5 March 1938 |
| 3 | Brentford | 0–3 | Preston North End | 5 March 1938 |
| 4 | York City | 0–0 | Huddersfield Town | 5 March 1938 |
| Replay | Huddersfield Town | 2–1 | York City | 9 March 1938 |
Semi-finals
The semi-final matches were played on Saturday, 26 March 1938. Preston North End and Huddersfield Town won their matches to meet in the final at Wembley.
| Huddersfield Town | 3–1 | Sunderland |
|---|---|---|
Pat Beasley  19' Tolley Wienand 62' Willie MacFadyen 75' |
Eddie Burbanks 80' |
Final
The 1938 FA Cup Final was contested by Preston North End and Huddersfield Town at Wembley. Preston, losing finalists the previous year, won by a single goal. After 29 minutes of extra time it was still 0–0 and BBC commentator Thomas Woodrooffe said "if there's a goal scored now, I'll eat my hat". Seconds later, Preston were awarded a penalty, from which George Mutch scored the winning goal; Woodrooffe kept his promise.[1][2]
Match details
| Preston North End | 1 – 0 | Huddersfield Town |
|---|---|---|
| Mutch 119' (pen.) |
      Preston North End
|
   Huddersfield Town
|
See also
References
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