It’s hard to imagine how big FA Cup Final day was in the past. It was the only day of the year when you could watch football all day from early morning to late afternoon; the only chance to see a lengthy build-up to a match; to meet the team; see the team bus arriving at the stadium; hear pre-match and post-match analysis in depth; and the only opportunity to experience that one indefinable feeling that has been lost in the modern age – the sense of occasion. No matter who was playing, the whole football community of Britain and Ireland tuned in. The twin towers gleaming; the Wembley turf immaculate; the terraces heaving; Abide With Me; and goals scored that you would remember for the rest of your life. Whiteside. Rush. Cantona. Sanchez. Houchen. Keith Houchen. Marvellous…
And in the weeks building up to these occasions, there was a tradition of recording an FA Cup Final song. A twee, silly and often embarrassing nonsense of a tradition, and one which just could not happen in any meaningful way now – image rights alone could be a legal minefield today. Here are some of the “best” ones.
Ossie’s famous “Tottingham” is around 2:24
Chelsea’s 1972 offering, one you’ll know:
The infamous Anfield Rap from 1988. As memorable as the result, and for the same reason:
I don’t understand anything that happens in the below clip:
There’s only one song to end on, however. Yours, your Dad’s and maybe even your Grandad’s childhood glorious May Saturday afternoons summed up and set to the one true FA Cup Final anthem.
A Yard of Grass 